DaysofPal- The Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF) have cut down around 3,000 olive trees in al-Mughayyir, a village northeast of Ramallah, according to the head of the local council.
The move comes amid a wave of escalating violence by the IOF across the occupied West Bank, set against the backdrop of the Israeli genocide in Gaza.
Israeli forces ordered the removal of olive groves across a 0.27 sq km area of the village, which is home to about 4,000 Palestinian people.
IOF claimed the trees posed a “security threat” to a nearby settler road that passes through Palestinian-owned land.
Al-Mughayyir has been under military lockdown since Thursday, after an Israeli settler alleged he was fired upon.
Since then, IOF have raided more than 30 homes, damaging property and vehicles, said Marzouq Abu Naim, the deputy head of the local council.
For decades, the Israeli occupation has systematically uprooted olive trees, a central symbol of Palestinian culture and livelihood, as part of its policy to seize land and displace Palestinian communities across the occupied territories.
Since the start of the Gaza genocide in October 2023, the West Bank has seen a surge in both military raids and Israeli settler assaults, forcing tens of thousands of Palestinians from their homes.
According to UN humanitarian figures, between January and July 2024, there were more than 2,370 settler attacks across the West Bank, with Ramallah and Nablus seeing the highest numbers.
In that same period, at least 671 Palestinians, including 129 children, were killed by Israeli forces and settlers.
Palestinian researcher Hamza Zubeidat described the act as part of the long-running Israeli effort to expel Palestinians from their lands.
He explained that since 1967, the IOF pursued the same strategy of displacing West Bank residents from both rural and urban areas.
Al-Mughayyir, with its rich agricultural tradition, relies heavily on farming and livestock. Zubeidat stressed that the targeted area is one of the most fertile in the Ramallah region and that uprooting trees, cutting off access to water springs, and restricting Palestinians from their farms deepens food and water insecurity.
Shortlink for this post: https://daysofpalestine.ps/?p=66854
