Khaberni - The Palestinian Ministry of Agriculture documented the Israeli occupation bulldozing and uprooting more than 8,000 trees in the West Bank within a single week this December.
It mentioned that most of the trees uprooted by the occupation were olive trees, causing significant financial losses for Palestinian farmers as well as environmental damage.
Yasser Ishtayeh, the Director General of the Directorate of Agriculture in Nablus, told Al Jazeera directly that what is happening on the ground constitutes a "fierce and systematic attack on the olive sector throughout the entire West Bank," confirming that the Palestinian farmer is the primary target of these aggressions.
Ishtayeh added that "this number does not reflect an exceptional or emergency situation, but rather, the uprooting of olive trees and their bulldozing has become a daily sight that is repeated in several provinces, but what happened last week was the most extensive in terms of number and area in a context of ongoing aggressions that have not stopped for years."
He pointed out that the escalation of aggressions in the recent period has directly reflected on the income of farmers who primarily depend on olive oil production, which is a main source of their livelihood.
He stated that the decrease in production this season and the rise in olive oil prices are linked to preventing farmers from accessing large areas of agricultural land, whether behind the separation wall or near bypass roads or under military and security pretexts, confirming that the Ministry of Agriculture strives, within available resources, to provide technical support to farmers and strengthen their endurance on their land.
In his turn, Thaer Hannani told Al Jazeera directly about what happened to his agricultural land in "Beit Furik," from which settlers uprooted dozens of olive trees.
Hannani added: "The olive tree forms the backbone of the Palestinian farmer's life. There were about 60 olive trees on my land before the settlers proceeded to uproot them and vandalize the fence, steal the posts, and everything related to the land."
He continued: "We care for the olive tree as we raise our children, nurturing it for many years until it grows and bears fruit, and when we see it destroyed, we feel intense grief and pain," noting that this reality includes dozens of farmers in Beit Furik and the neighboring villages.
As for Mahmoud Al-Boum from the village of "Qaryout," south of Nablus, he said that the occupation bulldozers uprooted all the olive trees in his agricultural land located behind his house.
Al-Boum added today that the occupation justified the bulldozing operation on the grounds that the area was "a closed military zone," confirming that the sight of the cut trees left great pain in the family's hearts.
Al-Boum also sent a message to the world calling for solidarity with Palestinian farmers, and to hold the occupation accountable for its crimes against land and humanity, and to stop the policy of land seizure without any justification.
Losses
The Palestinian Ministry of Agriculture estimated the losses resulting from the Israeli occupation army and its settlers uprooting more than 8,000 olive trees within a single week at about 7 million dollars.
According to its data, the aggressions concentrated in the northern and central parts of the West Bank, where the occupation uprooted 5,000 olive trees in the town of Silat al-Harithiya west of Jenin, and another 3,000 trees in Turmus'ayya east of Ramallah.
Additionally, the Ministry recorded further bulldozing operations including 156 olive trees in Mukhmas east of Jerusalem, and 100 fig trees in the towns of Ramin and An-Nazla al-Sharqiya in Tulkarm Governorate, in addition to 13 olive trees in Al-Funduq village east of Qalqilya and 19 olive trees, among them 10 ancient trees in Deir Istiya in Salfit and Al-Minya in Bethlehem, in attacks described by official bodies as a blatant violation of international humanitarian law and a direct target of Palestinian endurance components.
