The United Nations announced that attacks by Israeli settlers on Palestinians during the olive harvest season in the occupied West Bank have exceeded last season's total, with more than 200 attacks recorded since the start of the current season.
Deputy Spokesperson for the UN Secretary-General, Farhan Haq, said during the daily press briefing in New York that the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs reported an escalation in attacks targeting Palestinian farmers, despite the olive harvest season officially beginning today.
Haq explained that the attacks resulted in the killing of one Palestinian and the injury of more than 120 others, in addition to the damage of more than 2,500 olive trees and saplings, noting that about 80 percent of these attacks occurred during the past two weeks.
The toll recorded this season exceeded the total of 185 attacks documented by the office during the 2025 season.
He indicated that UN humanitarian organizations are working to provide equipment and agricultural supplies to farmers, in addition to documenting Israeli restrictions imposed on access to olive groves near settlements and lands behind the separation wall, as well as providing legal assistance to affected farmers.
In the Gaza Strip, the UN official warned of continuing obstacles facing the agricultural sector, amid the ban on importing agricultural equipment, the destruction of olive groves and restrictions on access to lands, especially those behind what is known as the Yellow Line.
He noted that the ban on importing agricultural supplies, engine oils and spare parts obstructs farming and harvesting operations and limits the ability of owners of the few remaining presses in the Strip to operate them.
