Israel’s War Against Palestine: Documenting the Military Occupation of Palestinian and Arab Lands

IDF to protect Palestinians harvesting olives, from settlers, for only 3 days

9 October 2009

By Anshel Pfeffer, Haaretz – 9 Oct 2009
www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1119811.html

The IDF banned Israelis from olive groves near Jewish settlements throughout the West Bank this week to enable Palestinians to harvest olives unhindered for two or three days. However, olive farmers and human rights groups say the harvest cannot be completed in that time.

In recent years settlers have attacked and shot Palestinians who harvested olives near West Bank settlements. In the past few months settlers set fire to Palestinian farm lands and olive groves. Over the past year settlers have cut down or burnt some 450 olive trees in the Nablus area, the Israel Defense Force estimates.

A special border police battalion was assigned to protect the farmers from settlers’ attacks during the harvest, which began this week.

The forces – at least twice as large as in previous years, IDF officers say – were deployed around the illegal Havat Gilad outpost at the beginning of the week. On Tuesday they protected harvesters near the Yitzhar settlement and intend to safeguard other West Bank areas including around Hebron.

West Bank olive farmers have been informed on what days they could harvest their olives under IDF and police protection.

So far, after three harvest days in conflict prone areas, Palestinians have reported only one incident, in which children from Yitzhar threw stones at olive pickers. However, Palestinians say three days are not enough to complete the harvest.

“My grandfather used to harvest enough olives for 60 large oil containers. Today we produce less than a quarter that,” said Amar Schada, of the village Hawara, at his family’s olive grove yesterday.

A large part of the grove was burnt down by the settlers recently. Even so, the IDF has not given him sufficient time to harvest. “After three days the police go away and say we have to finish,” he said.

The leading human rights group assisting the Palestinians during the harvest is Shomrei Mishpat – Rabbis for Human Rights, whose volunteers help with the harvest every year. They serve as a human buffer between the farmers and settlers and call the army if the settlers attack.

“We commend the army for the large forces deployed in the area but two days hardly gives the farmers enough time to complete the harvest,” said Rabbi Arik Ascherman, the group’s CEO.

The IDF’s Civil Administration commented, “based on past experience more than enough time has been allotted for the harvest and whoever needs will get more time.”

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