Qalqilya:Israeli occupiers reportedly set fire to olive trees east of Qalqilya in the northern West Bank, as soldiers expelled Palestinian farmers from their land, hindering the continuation of their harvest efforts, according to local sources.

According to Anadolu Agency – English, the incident occurred when Israeli occupiers stormed the Al-Shabaat area on land belonging to the village of Imatin, setting olive trees ablaze. Concurrently, army soldiers allegedly forced Palestinian farmers to leave the Al-Jabal area while they were harvesting olives, detaining a landowner and his workers.

The olive harvest season, which commenced in early October, has seen repeated attacks by Israeli occupiers across the occupied West Bank. These attacks include crop theft, assaults on farmers, and preventing them from accessing or working their fields. The Palestinian Colonization and Wall Resistance Commission documented 409 such attacks from October 1 to October 21, with 317 attributed to Israeli occupiers and 92 to the Israeli army.

The intensification of attacks on Palestinians and their property in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, has been noted since the onset of Israel's war on Gaza in October 2023. Palestinians have expressed concerns that these measures may be leading towards the formal annexation of the West Bank by Israel, which would undermine efforts to establish a Palestinian state as per relevant UN resolutions.

The historical context traces back to 1948, when Israel was established on land seized from Palestinians, resulting in the displacement of at least 750,000 Palestinians. Israel further occupied additional Palestinian territories in 1967 and has since refused to withdraw from them.