Settlers attack farmers in Yasuf and Deir Istiya and steal olives and harvesting equipment

Salfit - Ofoq News - Settlers’ attacks on farmers and olive pickers in Salfit Governorate continued, targeting their agricultural lands in the towns of Yasuf and Deir Istiya, forcing them to leave them, and seizing olive fruits and picking equipment, in light of the escalation of violations during the agricultural season.

In the village of Yasuf, east of Salfit, a farmer reported that settlers attacked farmers in the Al-Khalah area, assaulted them, forced them to leave their lands, and prevented them from continuing to harvest olives. They also stole the olive crop and a harvesting machine belonging to the farmer, Maamoun Marouf Issa.

In another attack in the village, settlers stole the battery of the harvesting machine belonging to farmer Rafiq Jasser Abdel Fattah, after stealing the battery of the harvesting machine belonging to farmer Ibrahim Hamouda, in a series of attacks targeting farmers and their equipment, causing them material losses and depriving them of continuing to work on their lands.

In the town of Deir Istiya, northwest of Salfit, activist Nazmi Salman said that settlers, accompanied by Israeli occupation forces, prevented citizens from picking olives in the western side of the town, and seized the olives and agricultural equipment, which obstructed farmers’ access to their lands and deprived them of harvesting their crops.

These attacks coincide with the olive harvest season, which constitutes an essential source of income for many Palestinian families, amid fears that farmers will continue to be targeted and their crops and equipment stolen, exacerbating their losses and threatening their ability to access and invest in their lands.