On October 10, in the hills above Beita, what should have been a joyous start to olive harvesting season illustrated what our Palestinian comrades face as they try to work their land. We arrived to ambulances and three injured Palestinians, attacked by settlers before 8am.
Within the first hour, we encountered a group of seven settlers. There was shouting, aggressive posturing and immediate confrontation with the Israeli Occupation Forces. The army fired tear gas canisters at us, and a journalist was injured. Then we were able to negotiate to continue the harvest, and for two and half hours, we enjoyed relative calm until the settlers returned in larger numbers.
We started to hear the screams of the Shabab, pointing at a confrontation on a nearby hill. We saw the first car out of eight lit on fire by the settlers, and then sound of live ammunition sent us looking for shelter. A crowd of Palestinians started to move around the hills, while others directed us to safe places as they extinguished the fire.
The settlers attacked the Palestinians from the hill behind, leading to the hospitalization of 11 Palestinians and one international volunteer, as well as the setting ablaze of eight cars, and a failed attempt at lighting the ambulance too.
This all happened in a well-known place of resistance, where just last year, one of our volunteers– Ayşenur Ezgi Eygi– was martyred while taking shelter in this olive grove.
Despite the injuries and violence, farmers we spoke to in Beita saw the day as a success. They still managed to collectively go to the villages’ land and harvest some olives. In many other locations, the harassment and violence of army-supported settlers have kept Palestinians from accessing their land at all.
Palestinians pay a heavy price for resisting on a daily basis, but the people of Beita refused to back down, in spite of the odds. The steadfast spirit of resistance is strong. We are not defeated.