Tag: Qusin

Qusin villagers prevented from planting olive trees on their land by Israeli army

6th April 2013 | International Solidarity Movement, Qusin, Nablus, Occupied Palestine

By Team Nablus

On Saturday 6 April villagers from Qusin, east of Nablus, accompanied by international and solidarity activists attempted to plant olive trees on land denied access to them by the Israeli Army. After successfully planting several trees, and proceeding closer to the military road that cuts through Palestinians lands, the Israeli Army prevented the group from planting any further trees and violently detained one person, dragging them across rocks.

Planting trees in Qusin (Photo by ISM) — Activists planting olive trees in Qusin (Photo by ISM)

The group were 40 strong and soguht to plant 50 olive trees on land near a military road just outside the village. After successfully planting several trees, which they dedicated to Palestinian prisoners killed by the Israeli authorities and international solidarity activists, in an area of land someway back from the road, the group proceeded towards the land next to the road.

Ten Israeli army soldiers and border police, accompanied by settler security, then approached the group, having just observed up to that point, and prevented farmers from planting the remaining trees. One person was violently detained, after being dragged across rocks and made to sit in the midday sun, despite protests by other members of the group. The soldiers also confiscated farm tools from the group. The person was later released and the tools were returned after protests from fellow group members.

The village of Qusin has been suffering as a result of wide scale land confiscation by the Israeli occupation. This was their fifth action, previous actions related to a quarry located on Palestinian land, where local illegal settlements are dumping rubbish some of which may be toxic according to samples of labels taken from the scene.

Qusin village is in Area B (Palestinian civilian control and Israeli military control), however the land the villagers attempted to access was in Area C, under full Israeli military control. This is as a result of the Oslo Accords and effectively divides the West Bank up into Bantustans, with the majority of the land under full Israeli military control and access to the land is regularly denied to farmers by the army.

Israeli soldiers preventing villagers from plating olive trees on their lands (Photo ISM)

Israeli forces on Palestinian land (Photo by ISM)

Qusin farmers face difficulty in olive harvest

16 October 2010 | International Solidarity Movement

Soldiers in front of illegal settlement in Qusin

On Saturday, for the first time in several years, families in the village of Qusin with properties close to the illegal settlements Shave Shomeron and Shave Shomron, were able to spend a few hours harvesting their olives before soldiers forced them to leave.

One of these families has been unable to access their land for the last nine years due to settler attacks and pressure from Israeli soldiers. Another family tried to pick olives about ten days ago but soldiers arrived and stopped them.

According to the Israeli High Court of Justice decision, these farmers have the right to access their land and soldiers must come to protect them. Immediately upon the families’ arrival at their land, however, soldiers confronted them and argued that for the protection of them from settler violence, it was necessary for the farmers to leave.

The families refused to quit and continued their work while international volunteers continued negotiating with the soldiers. After a few minutes the soldiers became impatient with the discussion and left temporarily, giving the farmers a short but appreciated chance to collect their olives: their first chance in many years.

Their excitement was short lived. Four hours later more aggressive soldiers arrived and wouldn’t allow for any discussion. The Palestinians were forced to withdraw from their property.

A perfect day ruined

by Stella

It was a beautiful morning but as usual too hot. We went with Mahmud’s family to harvest their olives. 7 of us rode with Mahmoud on his tractor as it jumped up and down the street filled with un-repaired potholes.

Once we arrived at the family’s olive trees, Mahmud’s wife began singing Palestinian folk songs. In any other world this would have been a perfect day with good food and happy people enjoying each others company while they worked. But this is not that world. This is occupied Palestine.

A military jeep pulled up close to Mahmud’s land and two soldiers approached us. They said we could not stay there without permission from the District Coordination Office (DCO). We explained that it is nonsense for Mahmud’s family to be forced to ask “permission” to farm land that he legally owns.

Mahmoud’s family is required to ask for permission to farm their own land because of the illegal Israeli settlement that sits a few hundred meters away. A road for Israeli settlers cuts through Mahmoud’s land. Two settlements sit on the tops of hills nearby and the residents speed past the olive grove. We suspect one of the settlers who drove past while harvested olives called the military.

Fearing he might be arrested if he protested this treatment too much, Mahmoud and his wife decided to return home. They had collected about one bag of olives. Some other bags filled with olives collected the day before had to be left once again.

This is the mundane reality of the settlements in the West Bank. They are obstacles to the normal lives of everyday Palestinian families just working to make a decent living and enjoy their lives. While politicians argue over non-existent settlement “freezes”, Mahmoud’s family hopes they can receive “permission” to collect olives off trees they own.