Roots of Resistance: Olive Harvest in the Shadow of Occupation

On Thursday, October 23rd, about 100 citizens of the Municipality of Sa'ir, a village about five miles northeast of Al-Khalil, marked the opening of the olive harvest season by attempting to harvest their olives in a location from which they have been blocked by the Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF) and settler violence since October 7, 2023. They were joined by at least 20 journalists and 6 international volunteers, who had responded to an urgent appeal from the Sa'ir Committee for Lands Threatened with Confiscation.

The call was for all farmers and landowners to participate widely on that day, to make the 2025 olive harvest season a "message of strength, unity, and cooperation." The Sa'ir Committee had extended a "special invitation to all local and international journalists" to attend and cover the event, which they hoped would convey the "true picture of the farmers' resilience and determination to remain on their land."

The invitation was written by Yusef, our host and one of the coordinators of the harvest. In September 2024, the house that Yusef had lovingly built with his own hands was stolen by illegal Israeli settlers, who kicked out Yusef and 16 of his family members. This expulsion was part of a broader campaign of forced removal. Since October 2023, Yusef shared, 43 families - 450 people - had been expelled from the Sa'ir area. From the street, we could see Yusef's house up on the hill, as well as several of the illegal Israeli settlers who had now commandeered it.

Immediately upon arriving to the groves closest to the illegal Israeli outpost, the harvesters were stopped by the Israeli army. At least seven soldiers, armed with live ammunition and two military vehicles, blocked the Palestinian harvesters, journalists, and international solidarity activists by showing them paperwork that now declared the Palestinian land a closed military zone. Other Palestinians slightly up the road from the Israeli army rushed to try and pick as many olives as possible, but only harvested one or two trees before getting evicted by the IOF.

At least 16 soldiers, some armed with rifles with tear gas attachments, and others with live ammunition, forcibly marched the group - at least 40 Palestinian harvesters, 20 journalists, and 6 international solidarity activists - down the road for a total of 40 minutes, stopping along the way to pull different harvesters out of their groves and prevent them from picking their olives. Members of the group, including at least one international solidarity activist, were shoved by Israeli soldiers, who shouted multiple times, "Your field trip is over. Move!"

During the forced march, two soldiers on a hill on the side of the road cocked their guns and aimed them toward the crowd, while illegal Israeli settlers observed the scene from the hillside.

 

Once the group was outside of the so-called "Closed Military Zone," between 16-20 soldiers and five military vehicles formed a blockade of the road for at least two hours, refusing to allow anybody to pass and return to their fields. Two small groups of Palestinians, likely the owners of the groves, did continue to harvest right near the soldiers, but nobody else was allowed to join them. Several illegal Israeli settlers came down from the top of the hill to attempt to harass the Palestinian harvesters.

After about two hours, most of the Palestinians left, unable to harvest their own olives. Other farmers climbed the steep hillsides to harvest in areas outside the so called "Closed Military Zone," but unfortunately the harvest was extremely scarce in those locations. Some Palestinians are predicting that, between the drought and the intense violence from the IOF and illegal settlers, the olive harvest this year will be only 5-20% of what it normally is.

Over and over, Yusef expressed the desire of the villagers to live in peace, to harvest their olives in peace, and to remain on their land. "We inherited this land from our ancestors. We are eating from the soil and we will remain here."

As the invitation from the Sa'ir Committee declared, "Let us all stand united behind the blessed olive tree, a symbol of peace and steadfastness, and make this a day that expresses our deep connection to the land and our identity. Together we protect our land."