"Olive farmers are experiencing the most challenging harvest season ever, from appalling levels of settler violence to strict and arbitrary movement restrictions which stop them from reaching their land," says Riham Jafari, advocacy and communications coordinator at ActionAid Palestine
Olive farmers say severe restrictions imposed by the Israeli authorities are making it almost impossible to access the groves they rely on for their livelihoods, with some reporting that they have been unable to harvest up to 80% of their trees.
These restrictions are part of a wider pattern of land seizures, forced displacement, settler violence and intimidation that is making it increasingly difficult for Palestinians to remain on and cultivate their land.
Ziad, an olive farmer from the north of the West Bank who has been working with olive trees for 50 years, said: "Previous harvest seasons were difficult, but this season is unprecedented. This is because the occupation authorities are preventing us from accessing our land, even the plots close to our homes, harvesting our olives and even taking our sheep there. We have been unable to do anything."
Palestinians are now barred from entering approximately 88,300 dunams of land (around 21,800 acres) unless they secure advance coordination with the military, an increase of 30 per cent compared to 2025, according to PeaceNow.
Abdullah, a farmer who owns olive groves and a board member of the Local Communities Foundation, said: "The restrictions imposed today have created extremely difficult circumstances for farmers. They can no longer access their land without first obtaining a permit. They may be allowed to access it for just one or two days throughout the year.
"In the past, a farmer needed a week or several days to harvest the produce from their land. Today, the two permitted days are barely enough to harvest 20% of the olives. This means losing 80% of the season's harvest. We are talking about areas that are among the most important sources of olive and olive oil production.
"This means that one of the main sources of income, particularly for Palestinian rural communities, is now under threat.”
Around 80,000 to 100,000 Palestinian families rely on the olive harvest each year as their primary or secondary source of income, according to UNOCHA. Since October 2023, the olive sector has suffered around $157million in losses, the Palestine Ministry of Agriculture estimates.
ActionAid is supporting olive farmers in the West Bank by providing equipment including ladders, pruning tools, harvesting sacks and sheets so that they can pick their olives quickly in the limited time they are permitted.
But even when they are able to access their land, farmers regularly experience violence, harassment and theft by Israeli settlers which prevents them from working and leaves them in fear for their lives, they told ActionAid.
This year's harvest season has already become the most violent ever recorded, before it has even finished. There have been 377 olive-harvest-related settler attacks since September, according to UNOCHA, a figure which exceeds the total recorded during any previous season.
Abdullah continued: "In many areas, we are witnessing serious injuries among people who go to their land to harvest olives. Farmers are beaten by settlers or the army, or by settlers acting with the army's support. Farmers themselves are also at risk of arrest. As a citizen, whether you are with your mother, father or sister, simply being on your own land puts you at risk of arrest.
"[Settlers] stop you and take everything you are carrying. As a result, people have become fearful and feel unsafe. They no longer feel that their money is secure, or even that the products they work so hard to produce are safe. People live with a constant sense of insecurity, and farmers feel that there is no one capable of protecting them.
"The olive tree used to be part of a beautiful traditional and social ritual. Farmers would go to their trees and take their sons and children with them to the land. Today, however, they can no longer take anyone with them because they fear the dangers they might face."
Mohammad, who has been working the same piece of land for around 20 years, said he faced regular attacks from settlers and that Israeli soldiers had threatened to arrest him simply for working on his land.
Describing one incident with a settler, he said: "He pointed a gun at me and put his finger on the trigger. Had it not been for the hired workers who were accompanying me... They stood between us and helped prevent me from being killed. Even though the army was present, it did not stand with me
"We are constantly exposed to the risk of being beaten, killed or becoming a martyr. We are living in a constant state of terror. And I'm not just worried about my own safety, I am responsible for other people's lives too. I bring workers with me, and their lives are in my hands.
"Honestly this current harvest is harder than last year’s one although we are in third year of war...and conditions should have become better."
Mohammed lost his work in Israel in October 2023 and now relies solely on the olive harvest to support his family. He said: “I haven’t had any work for three years, since the beginning of the war, so I wait all year for the olive harvest. I can hardly wait for it. I have children and a family to provide for.
"For us, olives are not just anything. They are the story of life. A story of hope. We hold onto them for religious reasons and because of our connection to the land."
Riham Jafari, advocacy and communications coordinator at ActionAid Palestine, said: "Olive farmers are experiencing the most challenging harvest season ever, from appalling levels of settler violence to strict and arbitrary movement restrictions which stop them from reaching their land. The olive harvest season is not just important for Palestinians economically; it holds much significance culturally, historically and socially, too. Yet it has turned from a celebratory time of hope to one of fear and extreme danger. No one should have to live and work like this: we demand that the rights of Palestinian olive farmers are respected and call for an immediate end to the violence and impunity."
The harassment and dispossession faced by olive farmers is just one manifestation of the daily oppression experienced by people living across the West Bank. ActionAid demands an immediate end to the Israeli government’s illegal occupation, as mandated by the International Court of Justice.
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Spokespeople are available for interview. For more information, or to arrange an interview, contact the press office at uk.media@actionaid.org or on 07753 973 486
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