The Palestinian people share an intimate bond with the olive tree, whose roots date back to thousands of years ago. To them, the olive tree symbolizes their deep connection to the land, peace, and security, while also holding a sacred status in various religious traditions. Olive trees blanket over 575,000 dunams (approximately 142,000 acres) of Palestinian land, constituting around 85% of fruit-bearing trees. In a good year, they yield about 33,000 tons of olives, with a reduced production of 7,000 tons in less favorable years. Since 1967, the Israeli occupation has been responsible for the destruction of 800,000 olive trees through uprooting and burning, employing increasingly extreme methods such as saturating trees with wastewater and spraying toxic substances onto the roots, resulting in complete devastation. Suspicious objects resembling landmines have also been planted by the occupation, and iron bars have been embedded in farmers’ lands to sabotage vehicles and agricultural machinery. The PLO Wall and Settlement Resistance Authority documented 140 Israeli attacks during the first half of this year, leading to the uprooting, damage, and poisoning of 8,340 olive trees. These attacks were concentrated mainly in the Ramallah and Al-Bireh Governorate, where 35 incidents were documented, followed by Nablus Governorate with 33 incidents, and Hebron Governorate with 24 incidents. In 2022, there were a total of 354 Israeli attacks targeting olive trees, resulting in the uprooting, damage, and poisoning of 10,291 olive trees. Nablus Governorate witnessed 93 attacks, followed by Bethlehem Governorate with 52 attacks, and Hebron Governorate with 49 attacks. In addition to restrictions faced by farmers due to Israeli settlements, about 90 Palestinian population clusters own lands adjacent to 56 settlements and numerous outposts. Many farmers cannot access their lands due to the Israeli authorities’ obstructive policies aimed at squeezing Palestinian farmers and converting their lands into buffers zones that they cannot cultivate, paving the way for eventual Israeli seizure. Thousands of dunams of olive orchards lie behind the Israeli segregation barrier or are encircled by settlements, where owners endure severe attacks and destruction, including land seizure, uprooting, burning, breaking, theft, and flooding with wastewater. Farmers lose an average of $45 million annually as a result of these Israeli attacks, according to the National Bureau for Defending Land and Resisting Settlements. The isolation caused by the separation barrier and proximity to settlements affects approximately 7% of the total olive orchards’ area. Owners need permits to access their lands, which are granted for limited and short periods to a few farmers, often at inconvenient times, such as plowing permits issued on rainy days when plowing is impractical. Ramez Ebeid, the Director of the Olive Department at the Ministry of Agriculture, explains that permits for entering lands isolated by the Israeli segregation barrier are limited in duration and scope, issued to only a few farmers, and sometimes at inconvenient times, such as plowing permits on rainy days when plowing is not possible. Furthermore, he says that Israel often refuses to grant permits to owners of lands very close to settlements, adding that the resulting lack of weed cultivation, pruning, and clearing can lead to more than a 50% loss of olive tree productivity if farmers manage to harvest the olives.

Source: En – Palestine news & Information Agency – WAFA