The Spokesman-Review · 8 November 2006
CP-2006-033
Palestinians have hopes for calm olive harvest
Israeli army protecting farmers from settler attacks
BY ARON HELLER / Associated Press
Transcribed from the clipping
AWARTA, West Bank – Standing in an olive grove, the 61-year-old Palestinian farmer smiled as red, green and black olives rained down from trees shaken by field hands. For six years West Bank farmers have had little to be happy about: Jewish settlers often attacked them during the harvest.
But spurred by a Supreme Court ruling, the Israeli army now protects the Palestinian olive groves. “This is a wonderful beginning,” said Khaled Junaidi, head of the Palestinian olive oil council. “These trees are the livelihood of our people.”
Olives are the backbone of Palestinian agriculture, and Palestinians are counting on a bumper harvest to boost their economy, which was weakened by an international aid boycott imposed after Hamas came to power.
Since the Palestinian uprising began in 2000, two West Bank olive farmers have been killed and dozens wounded in attacks blamed on settlers, who also cut down trees or steal crops. In other areas, farmers have been denied access to their land by settlers or the army. Israeli leaders have spoken out strongly against the settler violence.
Prime Minister Ehud Olmert has called on the army to act firmly against those he called hooligans. Defense Minister Amir Peretz commissioned a World Bank study on the olive harvest, and U.N. officials have said Peretz made protecting this year's harvest a priority.
The army traditionally kept its distance, but the tough talk of Israel's leaders, coupled with the Supreme Court ruling, has trickled down to the field.
Cite this clipping
"Palestinians have hopes for calm olive harvest," The Spokesman-Review, 8 November 2006. Covering Palestine archive, CP-2006-033. https://coveringpalestine.org/archive/cp-2006-033
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Last updated 2 November 2026
This record is part of Covering Palestine, an archive of American newspaper clippings about Palestinians, 1724 to 2023. Researched and assembled by Maria Robles.
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