Olive harvest 2025 under attack (West Bank)

The olive harvest is culturally, economically, and socially vital for many Palestinian communities. However, the 2025 season is expected to be subject to heightened risks. These stem from a combination of settler violence, restrictions on land access, environmental factors (including pests and climate change), and governance/policy issues.

Palestinian farmers experience frequent attacks during harvest time: vandalism of trees, burning or cutting down of trees, theft of crops, and intimidation. In many incidents, Israeli settlers are accompanied by Israeli occupation forces or benefit from insufficient protection by authorities. Some communities are identified as "hotspots" where violence or harassment recurs annually—especially villages near settlements, bypass roads, or in areas with settlement outposts. Certain governorates are likely to be more affected: Nablus, Ramallah, Hebron, Salfit, Qalqilya, and Tulkarem among them, especially for communities close to settlements or outposts.

Restrictions on Land Access: Many farmers are being denied or delayed access to their olive groves, especially where lands are near or behind settlements, barriers, or within Area C. Checkpoints, gates, and the requirement for permits (“prior coordination”) often limit access; in some cases entire orchards are inaccessible during the harvest. These restrictions negatively affect not only harvesting but all preparatory agricultural activities (pruning, fertilizing, pest control). Reduced maintenance further diminishes productivity.

Economic & Livelihood Impacts: Loss of harvest due to the above risks translates directly into financial harm: lost olive oil production, loss of trees (which are long‐term assets), missed market revenues. Many families rely heavily on olives and olive oil as a primary source of income; disruptions in harvest can undermine food security, household income, and cultural practices. The combination of environmental stressors (pests, climate) on top of security and access issues may lead to significantly lower yields in affected areas, potentially large economic losses and deeper food security challenges for vulnerable households.

Policy, Legal, and Institutional Risks: Permitting systems, zoning, rules about coordination for land access are sometimes arbitrary or revoked, making future planning difficult. These attacks or property damage often go without accountability.

Timeline of the main events

On October 10, a large-scale pogrom was carried out by 70 settlers and backed by Israeli soldiers, firing tear gas, stun grenade, and even live amnunition during the olive harvest in Beita, near Nablus. More than 12 Palestinian farmers and activist were wounded. The set fire at 8 cars including the vehcle of the AFP journalist. Another Palestinian journalist were injured.

On October 17, Israeli settlers attacked olive pickers in the towns of Aqraba, south of Nablus, and Farkha, south of Salfit in the occupied West Bank. A farmer had been picking olives with his wife and son when he was attacked and severely beaten by settlers. The farmer was later transferred to Salfit Governmental Hospital for treatment. According to Mustafa Hammad, head of the Farkha village council, the settlers had forced the farmer’s family off their land last week and returned this week.

At the same time, in Aqraba, settlers targeted farmers looking after their olive fields and forced them off their lands, second time since last week; Settlers targeted also farmers looking after their olive fields and forced them off their land.

In Silwad, Qabalan, Qusra, Ramin, Salem and the Beta area, settlers attacked Palestinians who were engaged in the harvest and prevented it. In Qusra, the settlers also opened fire on the harvesters.

At the harvest in Silwad, for example, which was held by Palestinian olive grove owners in cooperation with rabbinical human rights activists, instead of preventing the settlers from attacking, the army issued a closed military zone order, thereby effectively cooperating with the violence. The settlers also prevented rescue forces from entering the area, blocked an ambulance, and prevented the wounded from receiving medical treatment on the spot, while threatening that an "event" would occur if the ambulance reached the wounded.

On October 18, in Kobar, north of Ramallah, Israeli forces opened fire and launched stun and tear gas grenades at Palestinian farmers and journalists as they tried to access their land for the olive harvest. Soldiers fired at them, forcing them to retreat. No injuries were reported. “The (Israeli) occupation army prevented farmers from reaching their lands west of the village, particularly in the Qanater and Daak areas, and opened fire at them without causing injuries,” farmer Fahd Abu al-Hajj told Anadolu.

On October 19, in Turmus Ayya, a violent pogrom was carried out by settlers backed by soldiers, trapping all the farmers and solidarity activists in the plain between two occupied hills. Dozens of violent settlers, armed with batons, rocks, and guns, assaulted several people, including two Palestinian women and foreign activists. A 52-year-old woman was severely injured in the head. Jasper Nathaniel, a U.S. journalist and activist, was chased by dozens of settlers attempting to kill him.

Report of the first week:

The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) reported that settlers carried out 35 attacks targeting the olive harvest, affecting 27 villages across various West Bank governorates over the course of a single week. The assaults resulted in 99 injuries among Palestinians, in addition to widespread damage to agricultural lands and harvesting equipment, negatively impacting local olive production. The data warns of a dangerous escalation in settler violence during this year’s olive harvest compared to previous years, increasing the suffering of farmers and threatening local food security.

Repression of the Activist:

Israeli authorities have deported 32 foreign activists from the occupied territories and banned them from entry for 99 years over protecting Palestinian farmers during the olive harvest in the West Bank. The decision, directed by Interior Minister Yariv Levin and National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, came at the request of Yossi Dagan, head of the Settlements Council, who alleged that the activists cooperated with the Union of Agricultural Work Committees (UAWC), a Palestinian NGO aiding farmers against settler attacks.