Tag: Olive Trees - Page 11 - International Solidarity Movement

Settlers attack stopped by farmers in Talfeet

6 March 2014| International Solidarity Movement, Team Nablus| Talfeet, Occupied Palestine

Farmers caught a settler cutting down olive trees in Talfeet, delivered him to the Israeli police and lodge a complaint toward him.

This morning, at around 10:30, three farmers working on their land in Talfeet caught a settler cutting down ” title=”olive trees”>olive trees in the area. Quickly joined by other villagers, they were able to capture him. They then kept him on the spot, waiting for the Israeli police.

At 12:00, the police arrived the place with the army. After the explanations of those involved, they finally left with the settler under arrest.

Indeed, this settler, known as “Kurein” by the locals, is sadly notorious in the area surrounding the illegal settlement of Eli for different attacks and attempts to damage state properties.

Later in the afternoon, the farmers met again the Israeli police, going with soldiers and members of the DCO, to notice the damages and lodge a complaint toward Kurein. The Israeli mandated for this task clearly said to the villagers that the two “troublemakers” (ISM observers) were unwelcome and that they had to stay away from the area. Following the incident, when the two volunteers came back to the scene to take pictures, all the broken branches had been removed from the place.

Furthermore, last month, settlers from Eli tried on several occasions to attack the Palestinian houses during the night, waking up the inhabitants and placing pressure on the families. After many complains from the villagers to the mayor, a dialogue has been set up between the Israeli authorities and the Palestinian representative of Nablus area to try to prevent the aggressiveness of the settlers. This attack threatens the quietness of the last days in the village of Talfeet.

Palestinian activists successfully plant 100 olive trees in fields targeted by settlers in South Hebron Hills

15th February 2014 | Operation Dove | Susiya, Occupied Palestine

On February 15th, 2014, more than 60 Palestinian men, women and children from the South Hebron Hills and city of Hebron gathered in the Palestinian village of Susiya and together with international and Israeli activists, participated in a nonviolent action organized by the South Hebron Hills Popular Committee. The action consisted in planting some 100 olive trees on Palestinian-owned land near the settlement of Susiya.

Palestinians planting olive trees near Susiya (Photo by Operation Dove)

At around 11:00 a.m. Palestinian activists started to plant olive trees in the Palestinian-owned fields close to the gravel road in front of the settlement of Susiya. An army car was already there and after some minutes additional Israeli forces arrived on the spot for a total of ten border police officers, sixteen soldiers and two policemen. In the meantime, other activists were affixing placards which read “no to occupation and settlement expansion” to trees and electricity poles.

At 11:14 a.m. the soldiers declared the area a “closed military zone” and after some minutes started pushing the activists away. A group of Palestinians slowed the Israeli forces’ action, giving other Palestinians time to continue planting olive trees along the gravel road. In some cases border police officers used harsh manners, even jostling some women. The Israeli forces were able to make Palestinians move about 100 meters away.

As soon as the soldiers stopped pushing, Palestinian women began singing while other activists took pictures in front of the soldiers. The planting of olive trees continued. At 11:49 a.m. an army vehicle with a water cannon arrived and some activists moved away. However, a small group of activists faced the vehicle, standing in front of it and waving placards and chanting slogans against the Israeli occupation. At 12:16 a.m. when the planting was over, the Palestinians slowly returned to the Palestinian village of Susiya.

Among the Palestinian activists was Mustafa Barghouti, member of the Palestinian Legislative Council (Palestinian Parliament) since 2006 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mustafa_Barghouti).

That action was a direct reply to the uprooting of eighty olive trees in Palestinian fields near Susiya, which happened only five days previously (http://tuwaniresiste.operazionecolomba.it/?p=2994).

Palestinians from the South Hebron Hills are strongly committed to accessing their land for everyday farming activities.

Operation Dove has maintained an international presence in At-Tuwani and the South Hebron Hills since 2004.

Pictures of the incident: http://www.operazionecolomba.it/galleries/palestina-israele/2014/2014-02-15-palestinian-activists-successfully-planted-one-hundred-olive-trees-on-fields-targeted-by-settlers-in-south-hebron-hills/

For further information:
Operation Dove, 054 99 25 773

[Note: According to the Fourth Geneva Convention, the Hague Regulations, the International Court of Justice, and several United Nations resolutions, all Israeli settlements and outposts in the Occupied Palestinian Territories are illegal. Most settlement outposts, including Havat Ma’on (Hill 833), are considered illegal also under Israeli law.]

Eighty young olive trees uprooted in South Hebron Hills

14th February 2014 | Operation Dove | At Tuwani, Occupied Palestine

On the afternoon of February 11, Palestinians discovered about eighty olive trees uprooted alongside bypass road 317 near the Susiya junction in the South Hebron Hills.

Uprooted olive tree (photo by B'tselem) — Uprooted olive tree (photo by B’tselem)

The olive tree grove belongs to the Hushiya family from the nearby town of Yatta and had been planted only three weeks ago. Yesterday afternoon the owners and B’tselem staff members gathered near the destroyed trees, waiting for the police. The Israeli police and District Coordination Office arrived on the scene and documented the incident. Today Operation Dove volunteers and B’tselem staff went there to take more pictures.

This field is part of the area that settlers from the nearby settlement of Susiya illegally occupied during 2007, planting a vineyard. Immediately the Palestinians with the help of Rabbis for Human Rights filed a complaint and started a legal process concerning this land (for more details click here). In 2013 the Israeli High Court ordered the army to dismantle these crops and the order was implemented by force.

The number of Palestinian-owned trees uprooted and damaged in the South Hebron Hills area since the beginning of 2014 has risen to 100. Olive trees are an essential resource for the Palestinian community, and their damage causes serious economic loss.

Nevertheless the Palestinian communities of the South Hebron Hills area are still strongly involved in using nonviolence as a way to resist to the Israeli occupation. Just two days ago twenty-five Palestinians planted sixty new olive trees on their own land close to the illegal Avigayil outpost (for more details clickhere).

Operation Dove has maintained an international presence in At-Tuwani and the South Hebron Hills since 2004.

Pictures of the incident: click here

For further information:
Operation Dove, 054 99 25 773

Israeli forces protect settlers as they cut down Palestinian family’s trees

12 February, 2014 | International Solidarity Movement, Khalil Team | Hebron, Occupied Palestine

On the afternoon of February 11, 2014, settlers in the Tel Rumeida neighborhood of Al-Khalil (Hebron) cut down trees belonging to the Abu Eisheh family. While attempting to film the destruction of the trees, four human rights activists were arrested by Israeli police.

At approximately 3:30 p.m., three activists, a Swiss-American, an American, and an Italian, were sitting in their apartment in Tel Rumeida when they heard a commotion outside. Outside the apartment, they found a group of settlers, Palestinians, Israeli soldiers and Israeli police. They were informed by the Palestinians that a group of settlers was cutting down trees at a house just up the road.

The three activists began filming but were not allowed up the road to where the tree-cutting was taking place. While filming, the American activist was physically assaulted by a settler. None of the soldiers or police officers present intervened. Instead, the Israeli police took the passports belonging to the American and Swiss-American and told them to sit on the ground.

At this time, the Italian citizen returned to the apartment, where she was joined by a fourth activist, an American, who had just arrived. Shortly thereafter, a group of soldiers and police officers attempted to enter the apartment. They were not allowed entry, but briefly questioned the two activists outside the apartment door. The Israeli police then confiscated the passports belonging to the American and the Italian.

Not long after, all four activists were transported to the police station near Kiryat Arba, where they were interrogated and threatened with deportation. After seven hours, the activists were released.

The following day, February 12th, two activists from Christian Peacemaker Teams visited Tel Rumeida to document the destruction of the trees. They were not there long before several Israeli soldiers approached them, told them to stop filming, and took their passports. They were held for two hours before their passports were returned. Israeli soldiers informed the two activists that if they approached the trees again they would be arrested.

The destruction of Palestinian trees by settlers is a chronic problem, not only in Tel Rumeida, but all over the West Bank. In the past month alone, more than 2500 trees in the village of Sinjil were destroyed by settlers. Trees have also recently been destroyed by settlers in Qusra, Ramallah, and Nablus. Fruit trees are an essential resource for the Palestinian community, and their damage causes serious economic loss. It takes as long as 12 years for an olive tree to reach full maturity.

dave — ISM activist with settlers in Tel Rumeida (photo by ISM Italy)

Military repression following a settler attack in Qusra

7th January 2014 | International Solidarity Movement, Nablus Team | Qusra, Nablus District, Occupied Palestine

On the 7th of January in Qusra, two farmers working on their land were threatened by settlers carrying guns. Villagers helped them to chase the invaders away before being violently repressed by the army.

On Friday, at 10:30 a.m., two Palestinian farmers were working their land around the village of Qusra when they were ordered by two armed settlers to stop their work and leave the area. The two farmers refused to obey, and called members of the municipality. Soon, about 50 villagers reached the scene, immediately followed by seven Israeli military vehicles, most of them from the border police. They demanded all the Palestinians to leave the area within five minutes.

When the villagers refused to leave, the army began firing tear gas, rubber-coated steel bullets and stun grenades. The attack lasted until 3:00 p.m. Seven Palestinians were injured; four of them were less than eighteen years old.

The two settlers responsible for the attack are from the illegal colonial outpost Raheir, totaling less than ten permanent residents.

Friday’s events mark the 65th recorded attack on the village of Qusra in the past two years. Since the beginning of January, 88 olive trees have been destroyed by the settlers and one young man suffered a severe head injury. In the year 2013, 870 olive trees were destroyed and 30 people were injured, five of them severely. 3,11 dunums of land were annexed and access to 500 more was declared forbidden for Palestinians for “security reasons .”