More than 150 settler and Israeli army attacks recorded so far this season as Palestinian farmers face mounting assaults.

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Settler Attacks Surge Across the West Bank

RAMALLAH, Occupied West Bank – October 25, 2025:
Israeli settlers launched a new wave of attacks on Palestinian farmers across the occupied West Bank, intensifying a campaign of violence that has marred this year’s olive harvest season.

According to the Palestinian Wafa news agency, at least three Palestinians were injured on Saturday after settlers stormed the village of Deir Nidham, northwest of Ramallah, assaulting residents harvesting olives.

Local activist Mujahid Tamimi told Wafa that settlers attacked farmers near the village’s western entrance, beating them with rifle butts and forcing them to abandon their land.

Following the assault, Israeli forces entered the village to shield the settlers and detained 31-year-old Motasem Abdullah Tamimi, witnesses said.

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Spike in Violence Amid Gaza War’s Shadow

The latest attacks come as Palestinians endure a sharp rise in settler and Israeli military violence amid the ongoing Gaza war, which erupted in October 2023.

Since then, more than 1,000 Palestinians have been killed and over 10,000 injured in the West Bank, according to the Palestinian Ministry of Health.

This year’s olive harvest — a vital economic and cultural season for Palestinian families — has been marked by coordinated settler assaults, land seizures, and military roadblocks preventing farmers from reaching their groves.

Al Jazeera correspondent Nour Odeh noted that many of these attacks “occur under the protection of Israeli soldiers who sometimes actively participate,” adding that settlers have grown “emboldened by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s right-wing coalition.”

“The attacks are intended to drive Palestinians out of their homes, to create an environment where staying in one’s town is simply untenable and unsafe,” Odeh reported.

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Olive Harvest: A Targeted Livelihood

The olive harvest season, which began in early October, is central to the Palestinian economy and identity. Between 80,000 to 100,000 families depend on olive cultivation as a primary or secondary source of income, according to United Nations data.

The Palestinian Wall and Settlement Resistance Commission documented 158 attacks on olive pickers so far this season — 141 by settlers and 17 by Israeli soldiers — highlighting a growing pattern of state-backed settler violence.

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Systematic Attacks Across Palestinian Villages

Across multiple districts, Palestinians have reported harassment, beatings, and land theft:

• Kafr Malek (East of Ramallah): Settlers sprayed pepper gas at Palestinian farmers, injuring several people.
• Nahalin (Near Bethlehem): A settler and three Israeli soldiers assaulted 65-year-old Ahmad Shakarna as he picked olives with his family.
• Beit Awwa (Southwest of Hebron): Israeli forces fired tear gas and sound bombs at farmers in the al-Baqa’a area, forcing them to retreat.
• Aqraba and Qabalan (South of Nablus): Armed settlers, some accompanied by attack dogs, beat farmers and confiscated harvesting tools, injuring at least three Palestinians before expelling them from their land.

The United Nations and human rights organizations have long accused Israeli forces of enabling settler attacks, citing a culture of impunity where perpetrators are rarely prosecuted.

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Illegal Settlements Expanding Violence

More than 700,000 Israeli settlers now live in over 250 settlements and outposts across the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem — all illegal under international law.

In the past two years alone, settlers have carried out more than 2,400 documented attacks on Palestinian communities, resulting in the displacement of at least 3,000 residents, according to the UN High Commissioner for Refugees.

Human rights monitors warn that the violence coincides with continued Israeli settlement expansion, road closures, and restrictions on Palestinian movement — actions critics describe as part of a broader campaign to annex occupied territory and forcibly displace Palestinians.

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Calls for International Intervention

Palestinian officials have urged the United Nations, European Union, and Arab League to intervene, demanding protection for civilians and accountability for settler violence.

“These attacks are not isolated incidents — they are part of a systematic effort to erase Palestinian presence from the land,” said Ghassan Daghlas, a Palestinian Authority official tracking settlement activity in the northern West Bank.

So far, international condemnation has been limited to statements of concern, while Israeli authorities continue to justify military operations as “security measures.”