Israeli settler rabbi Dov Lior ruled on Friday that settlers may harvest olives from Palestinian-owned groves, claiming the land belongs to the Jewish people, which constitutes theft under Jewish law, according to Quds News Network. The ruling comes amid a surge in army-backed settler violence against Palestinians in the occupied West Bank, as part of efforts aimed at ethnic cleansing.
The ruling follows a letter issued a week earlier by six rabbis from the Gush Etzion settlement, who said harvesting olives from Palestinian-owned groves constitutes theft under Jewish law. His ruling was not limited to land near illegal settlements, however, and also permitted settlers to take olive crops from Palestinian areas farther away.
The ruling comes amid a surge in settler violence against Palestinians, with at least 170 attacks recorded since September 27, around the beginning of the annual olive harvest, according to Israeli monitoring group Yesh Din.
The settler violence against Palestinians is often carried out with the backing of Israeli forces and the occupation government against Palestinians, their lands and property in villages and towns across the occupied West Bank with the purpose of forcing Palestinians out of their homes and lands.
The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs recorded more than 1,330 settler-related attacks on Palestinians in the West Bank from January to late July, averaging six a day and representing the fastest pace in about 20 years.
According to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, attacks during the olive harvest are particularly significant, as access to agricultural land and livelihoods are a major context for Israeli settler violence. It has documented injuries to farmers and the destruction of hundreds of olive trees across several towns in the occupied West Bank.
On Friday, masked settlers wielding clubs and other weapons attacked people attempting to harvest their olives in West Bank towns.
Palestinian authorities said they recorded attacks in eight villages, and injuries among at least 20 people.
In the town of Abu Falah, near Ramallah, at least 80 settlers, some of whom were carrying firearms or clubs, gathered to stop Palestinians from harvesting their olives, using slingshots to hurl rocks at the farmers in view of Israeli military vehicles. When some of the Palestinians then picked up rocks to defend themselves, the Israeli military fired tear gas in their direction.
Among those injured was the Washington Post photographer Heidi Levine, who was beaten by settlers in an attack that lasted more than 10 minutes, according to witnesses. Settlers stole her passport, phone, wallet and equipment.
“I was attacked, pushed to the ground. Luckily, I had my flak jacket and helmet, otherwise I probably wouldn’t even be here, because they just kept kicking and kicking me,” Levine said from a hospital bed in Ramallah. She said the attack ended when her Palestinian colleagues intervened to save her.
In a statement, the Washington Post said Levine had been wearing visible markings clearly identifying her as a journalist.
More than 2,300 Palestinians had been displaced in 2026 as a result of settler attacks and related access restrictions, according to OCHA.
Around 700,000 Israeli settlers live in the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem across roughly 300 settlements and outposts. The settlements are regarded as illegal under international law, according to the International Court of Justice.
Human rights groups say the Israeli occupation has allowed the settlers to operate with total impunity in their attacks against Palestinians. Israeli organization B’Tselem has accused Israel of actively aiding the settlers’ violence “as part of a strategy to cement the takeover of Palestinian land”.
The UN also warned last year that settler attacks were being carried out “with the acquiescence, support, and in some cases participation, of Israeli security forces”.
