One Palestinian killed and 16 injured during clashes over olive harvest in West Bank

A 44-year-old Palestinian man, Ali Hassan Yasser al-Bazzari, was killed and 16 people were injured while harvesting olives near Burqa, west of Nablus, according to the Palestinian Ministry of Health. Several of the wounded, including a woman, were taken to hospitals in Tulkarem and Nablus. The Palestine Red Crescent Society treated five victims on site, two of whom had gunshot wounds and three suffered beatings. The society said Israeli forces also confronted ambulance crews, briefly detaining three paramedics and a volunteer.

Reporters noted that the incident occurred during the olive-harvesting season, a period traditionally important for Palestinian families. One correspondent said that farmers now face heightened risks from both movement restrictions and armed settlers.

Separate incidents were reported in the central West Bank near Anata, where settlers and Israeli forces also confronted olive pickers, and in the village of Mikhmas, where at least 50 olive trees belonging to a local family were cut down. Overall, Palestinian sources say about 45,000 olive trees have been destroyed across the West Bank this year.

Since October 7, 2023, Palestinian monitoring groups have recorded nearly 15,000 settler-related attacks in the West Bank, resulting in 66 Palestinian deaths. In a related event in the village of Marda, north of Salfit, several harvesters were treated for tear-gas exposure after a clash that also led to the detention of three Palestinians. In Jenin, a Palestinian was shot with live ammunition during a raid and was later hospitalized. Israeli forces imposed a curfew in Burqa after settlers entered the village.