The Olive Harvest Season in Palestine, 2003

'And the dove came in to him in the evening; and, lo, in her mouth was an olive leaf pluckt off: so Noah knew that the waters were abated from off the earth' Genesis 8:11

The olive tree is an integral part of the Mediterranean collective heritage and symbolizes prosperity and peace. It has always been an important part of the Mediterranean culture and a significant corner of  the Palestinians' daily life. Palestine was no different from its Mediterranean neighbors; they regard the olive tree as a valuable commodity and an essential element of their future and prosperity.

During the preceding 36 years of Israeli occupation, Israel spared no effort to purge the Palestinian Territories from this sacred tree. The Israeli attempts to compromise the existence of the olive tree in the Palestinian Territories started soon after the 1967 war when Israel captured the West Bank and Gaza Strip. The olive tree was indisputable evidence of the Palestinian ownership of the Land. The Israeli efforts to control the Palestinian land under the pretext of 'bygone laws' went in vain as the status of the olive trees in the Palestinian Territories was an explicit evidence that the olive trees were well maintained over centuries.

The olive tree has always been a target of the Israeli aggression on the Palestinian land, more of an orderly attack to divest the Palestinian land of its existence. Israel policy of land expropriation to build settlements and construct bypass roads all throughout the Palestinian territories have cost the Palestinians a substantial number of olive trees in excess of one million. The uprooting of the Palestinian olive tree was also a part of the Israeli occupation to contain and reduce the foremost natural resource of the Palestinian land. The orderly uprooting of olive trees by Israel in the Palestinian Territories always encountered an activity in relation to Israel; building settlements, constructing bypass roads, closed military areas, buffer zones, security zones, etc. See Photo 1, Photo 2 & Photo 3 , &

Israeli soldiers uprooting olive trees near Bethlehem city in Z'atara village to build a new bypass road. June 2, 2002

The olive harvest season is a celebrated time for the Palestinians: much as other countries, that takes pride and joy during the harvest times. The Israeli Army and the Settlers who operates under the protection of the preceding have altered this time of the years from a joyful season to a season of terror and despair. The Palestinian farmers during the olive harvest season are subjected to all kinds of terror. The fortified Israeli settlers under the Israeli Army protection seek to terrorize the Palestinian farmers by attacking them constantly; threaten their lives and the lives of their families, burning entire fields of olive trees, or spreading chemical agents to chemically burn and dry out the olive trees. See Photo 4

Photo 4: Olive trees are systemically uprooted, especially those located near roads traveled by settlers

Moreover, the Israeli settlers deny the Palestinian farmers' access to their lands during olive harvest season especially those lands adjacent to the Israeli settlements.

And now the Segregation Wall

The fallout of the Israeli built western Segregation Wall (Phase 1) in the Palestinian territories falls into different categorize. It confines the Palestinian territories to their current status with virtually no space for future territorial expansion. The western Segregation Wall also cuts off territorial contiguity between the West Bank districts.

On the other hand, the wall will detach the residents (280,000) of towns and villages (126), which penetrates their lands and slash  out of 1043 Km2 of the total West Bank.The 620 Km long wall will literally devour approximately 18% of the West Bank. The Palestinians will mostly require special permits from the Israeli Authorities to reach their lands or just to get through to where they want to go; schools, hospitals, work, or anywhere else; passing through lands expropriated for the benefit of the Segregation Wall. See Map of the Segregation Wall

The western Segregation Wall (Phase 1) resulted in the uprooting of approximately 240,000 olive trees compromising a massive proportion of the Palestinian agricultural natural resources.

See Photo 5

Photo 6: The Wall uproots trees, sets land apart and separates farmers from their fields: The Wall uproots trees, sets land apart and separates farmers from their fields

 How much are the losses of this farmer?

Facts & Figures about Olive Trees

• Total area planted with olive trees in the West bank is in the region of 750.000 Dunums holding more or less 12 million olive trees.
  Total area of land with olive trees isolated west of the segregation wall is 133.282 Dunums holding approximately 2.132.500 olive trees.

• Total area of land with olive trees directly affected by the segregation wall including the buffer zone, is 15.000 Dunums, which, will eliminate 240.000 olive trees with total olive oil production estimated at 2550 tons and a value of $11.5 million per year. See Map of Olives

• A considerable number of villages whose farmers cannot access their olive fields due to settlers' aggressive actions against them.    See Table 1 & Table 2

Table 1: Villages whose farmers cannot access their olive fields

Table 2: Violations against Farmers and Olive trees

        Source: Al-Quds daily newspaper, Al-Ayam daily newspaper

Prepared by:
The Applied Research Institute – Jerusalem

&
Land Research center-Jerusalem