Israeli violations during the olive harvest: A war on Palestinian land and identity

The olive harvest in Palestine is one of the oldest and most significant national and social rituals, deeply linking Palestinians to their land. However, in 2025, it turned into a season of fear and conflict rather than joy and celebration. Israeli attacks escalated to unprecedented levels, reflecting a deliberate field policy aimed at uprooting farmers from their lands and destroying symbols of their historical connection to the land.

Unprecedented escalation of attacks

From early October to early November 2025, the Al-Baider Organisation for the Defence of the Rights of Bedouins and Targeted Villages documented approximately 390 attacks against Palestinians in the West Bank, including 224 attacks directly targeting farmers during the olive harvest. The attacks were concentrated in the governorates of Jerusalem, Salfit, Hebron, Nablus, Ramallah, Bethlehem, and Qalqilya.

These violations included preventing farmers from accessing their lands, with the organisation documenting 26 cases of access denial through the closure of agricultural roads and the erection of dirt barriers. Additionally, 82 cases of live fire and physical assaults were reported, resulting in injuries among farmers and solidarity activists. These attacks were accompanied by systematic verbal threats from settlers, aimed at intimidating residents and forcing them to abandon their lands.

In areas surrounding settlements near Nablus and Ramallah, armed settlers gathered to issue direct threats, followed by 17 evictions and 32 cases of crop theft. Journalists and international human rights observers were repeatedly attacked, most notably the assault on journalist Ranin Sawafṭa in the town of Beita, south of Nablus. Incursions also took place in villages such as Burin, Raba, Ein al-Duq, Sa’ir, and Turmus’ayya, all under the watch of the Israeli army, which merely observed without intervention.

The organisation also documented 36 cases of olive tree uprooting, affecting more than 1,710 trees, particularly in the Marj Si’ area between the villages of al-Mughayyir and Abu Falah east of Ramallah, as part of a clear policy to expand settlement outposts. Villages east of Ramallah, including al-Mughayyir, Turmus’ayya, and Kafr Malik, face daily attacks ranging from arson to theft and physical assault, representing a stark example of “creeping displacement” under military protection.

Humanitarian and economic impact

Data from the Al-Baider Organisation and the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) indicate that October 2025 recorded the highest rate of settler attacks since documentation began in 2006, with an average of eight attacks per day. This escalation reflects a deliberate strategy to depopulate Palestinian agricultural areas, particularly around settlements, by spreading continuous fear and violence.

Olive cultivation forms the backbone of the Palestinian rural economy, supporting over 80,000 families as their primary source of livelihood. Therefore, the destruction of trees and theft of crops is not merely an agricultural loss but a direct assault on the national economy and Palestinian cultural identity.

The Al-Baider Organisation estimates direct losses exceeding $4 million this season, including stolen produce, uprooted trees, and replanting costs. The psychological toll is equally severe, as accessing the fields has become a daily life-threatening challenge, with farmers facing constant threats of death or detention. Consequently, these attacks represent not only material violations but assaults on the Palestinian people and their emotional and historical connection to their land.

Flagrant violations of international law

These violations constitute clear breaches of the Fourth Geneva Convention (1949), which prohibits the destruction of protected civilian property except when absolutely necessary for military operations. Uprooting olive trees and razing agricultural lands without a legitimate security justification violates Article 53. Additionally, theft of crops or denial of access constitutes collective punishment and looting, prohibited under Article 33 of the same convention.

From an international human rights perspective, these practices violate Article 11 of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, which guarantees the right to food and an adequate standard of living. Physical assaults and gunfire also breach Article 9 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, ensuring personal security and bodily integrity.

Legally, the systematic destruction of property on such a large scale qualifies as war crimes under Article 8 of the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court. Israel bears dual responsibility for these acts, both directly through its military and indirectly through complicity with settler militias.

Attacks on journalists and human rights observers violate Article 79 of the First Additional Protocol to the Geneva Conventions (1977), which guarantees protection for journalists in conflict zones. They also contravene Article 19 of the ICCPR, which protects freedom of expression. Targeting media personnel and observers reflects a systematic effort to conceal the truth and prevent documentation of violations.

Recommendations and required actions

The study outlines key recommendations to address these escalating violations:

1. Immediate international protection for farmers and journalists by deploying permanent field monitoring teams in hotspots such as Nablus, Ramallah, and Hebron, ensuring deterrence and real-time documentation.

1. Legal utilization of documented violations to bring cases before the International Criminal Court under the Palestine file, transforming evidence into an effective tool for international accountability.

1. International political pressure on Israel to end the policy of “military closed zones,” which prevent Palestinians from accessing their lands and serve as a pretext for settlement expansion.

1. Compensation for farmers and rehabilitation of affected lands through sustainable agricultural projects, recognizing the replanting of trees as an act of economic resistance.
2. Support for Palestinian civil society organizations, particularly Al-Baider, to enhance monitoring and verification tools and strengthen digital databases.

1. Active international media coverage of attacks as they occur, preventing the erasure of facts and exposing the Israeli narrative to global audiences.

Conclusion

The 2025 olive harvest reveals the true nature of the Israeli settlement project: not merely land acquisition, but a war on Palestinian existence itself. Attacks on olive trees strike at memory, identity, economy, and culture. Continuation of these practices without accountability encourages further occupation crimes and opens the door to slow ethnic cleansing that displaces original village populations.

The Al-Baider Organisation calls on the international community and human rights bodies to act immediately and decisively to hold Israeli officials accountable, provide international protection for civilians and journalists, and support the resilience of Palestinian farmers, who embody the core of nonviolent resistance. The olive tree, a symbol of peace and life, has become in Palestine a symbol of survival and dignity, and its endurance represents the continuation of Palestinian identity in the face of attempts at uprooting and erasure.

The views expressed in this article belong to the author and do not necessarily reflect the editorial policy of Middle East Monitor.