West Bankupdated 3m ago3 min read
Israeli Colonizers Fire Live Ammunition, Burn Olive Trees Near Ramallah, Injuring Farmers
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Masked Israeli settlers attacked Palestinian olive pickers near Abu Falah, northeast Ramallah, injuring several. They set olive groves on fire and burned cars during the assault.
19 outlets told this the same way.
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Deir Jarir olive harvest attacks
Israeli colonizers attacked Palestinian olive harvesters and solidarity activists for the second consecutive day in Deir Jarir, northeast of Ramallah, and local sources said the attackers fired live ammunition to intimidate farmers and prevent them from completing the olive harvest. The colonizers forced farmers to leave their lands, and separate video footage documented colonizers attacking and hurling stones at a vehicle on Palestinian land in Deir Jarir. Local sources said Israeli colonizers grazed their sheep on agricultural land planted with olive trees in the eastern plain of Al-Mughayyir village, northeast of Ramallah, and grazing damaged olive trees and other crops.
The Wall and Colonization Resistance Commission documented 34 attacks by colonizers against Palestinian farmers, their lands, and crops between Friday morning and evening, and the Commission said the attacks injured at least 19 Palestinians. The Commission added that the attacks included beatings, forcing olive harvesters from their lands, detaining and abducting them, stealing crops and equipment, and setting fire to vehicles and trees.
Abu Falah clashes and injuries
Masked Israeli settlers attacked Palestinian farmers in the occupied West Bank on Friday, burning olive trees, throwing stones, and injuring residents and an American photojournalist as violence escalated during the annual harvest season.
Reuters witnesses said about 80 settlers dressed in black descended on a terraced olive grove above the village of Abu Falah, northeast of Ramallah, and some carried gas canisters while others used slingshots to hurl stones at the farmers.
Heidi Levine, an American photojournalist working for The Washington Post, said the attackers pushed her to the ground and repeatedly kicked her, and she told reporters, "I was attacked, pushed to the ground. Luckily I had my flak jacket and helmet, otherwise I probably wouldn't even be here, because they just kept kicking me and kicking me,".
The Israeli military said soldiers and border police officers deployed to the scene fired warning shots, and the military acknowledged that troops fired toward a person they believed posed a threat.
Washington Post executive editor Matt Murray condemned the attack and called for a thorough investigation, saying, "This morning, a Washington Post photographer, Heidi Levine, was attacked by Israeli settlers while reporting in the West Bank,".
Calls for accountability and wider impact
Israeli forces fired tear gas canisters at Palestinian olive harvesters on Saturday morning in the village of Abu Falah, north of Ramallah, and local sources said the firing aimed to force harvesters to leave and prevent them from continuing to harvest olives.
The BBC said a local official reported that the attacks injured 12 Palestinians, including four dual Palestinian American citizens, and the BBC team witnessed cars carrying wounded Palestinian olive farmers racing out as smoke rose from fires nearby.
A US State Department spokesperson said, "We condemn criminal violence by any party in the West Bank and call for investigations, arrests, and convictions, of those responsible," and the spokesperson also said they were aware of the reports.
The BBC described 73-year-old Imm Khaldoun telling a BBC reporter, "This is my land. It's my right [to be here]", as she watched vehicles stream past her.
The BBC also quoted Amin Khalil saying, "This is a hotspot – there are seven settlements around here," and the BBC reported that olive picking had become a test of speed as trees were stripped of fruit before settlers attacked.