Violation: Theft of olive harvest.
Location: Ramin village, located south of Tulkarm city.
Date of Violation: 17/10/2024.
Perpetrators: A group of colonists.
Affected Party: Ahmad Adel Abdul Ghani Rashid Salman.

Description:

On the afternoon of Thursday, October 17, 2024, a group of colonists raided the "Al-Roush" area, located west of Ramin village, near the pastoral colonial outpost established in the area.

The colonists took advantage of the farmers' inability to access their lands due to their proximity to the outpost. This coincided with the start of the current olive harvest season, targeting a plot of land planted with fruitful olive trees in a nearby area. The colonists stole olives directly from the trees and then broke the branches of a significant number of trees. According to estimates by the Directorate of Agriculture in Nablus Governorate, 40 fruitful olive trees were damaged.

The affected land belongs to farmer Adel Abdul Ghani Rashid Salman, who supports a family of 6, including 2 women and 2 children.

The affected farmer reported to the LRC's investigator as follows:

*"I own a piece of land located in the plains of Ramin village, which I have always cultivated and cared for. However, four years ago, the occupation established a pastoral colonial outpost in that area. Since then, the colonists have become a familiar presence to us, frequently attacking and damaging our lands.

A year ago, the occupation prohibited anyone from entering or farming the land, preventing us from harvesting the olives. This year, after much delay, we finally obtained coordination to access the land and harvest the olives. However, we were shocked to find the branches completely destroyed, and even the olives had been stolen.

We reported the incident to the Directorate of Agriculture in our area and to the governorate, where the damage was documented. Unfortunately, there has been no legal follow-up."*

It is worth noting that the Israeli occupation imposes restrictions on Palestinians accessing their lands near Israeli settlements, bypass roads, and the apartheid annexation and expansion wall. In many cases, prior coordination and a permit are required for a citizen to access their own land. This situation is exploited by settlers, who take advantage of the absence of landowners to harvest the crops, stealing the produce. By the time the farmer obtains a permit to access their land, the settlers have already stolen the harvest and damaged or destroyed the trees.

 Ramin is a Palestinian village in the Tulkarm Governorate of the West Bank. It is one of the villages affected by the 1967 war. The village is located about 10 kilometers east of Tulkarm city, surrounded by a series of mountains and neighboring villages. Its built-up area covers 300 dunams.

The total area of Ramin's lands is 8,868 dunams, including 178 dunams allocated for roads and valleys. Its lands are bordered by the villages of Bazaria, Beit Lid, Saffarin, Anabta, Kafr al-Labad, Sebastia, Al-Naqoura, Burqa, and Deir Sharaf. The land is cultivated with grains, beans, lupines, and vegetables, as well as olive trees, almonds, figs, and grapes. The village's residents are also involved in livestock farming and work in education, trade, and various professions.

In 1997, the population of Ramin was approximately 1,567 people.
Notable families in the village include the Salman, Hamad, Zidan, and Thafer families.

مشروع: حماية الحقوق البيئية الفلسطينية في مناطق "ج" SPERAC IV - GFFO

Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this report are those of Land Research Center and do not necessarily reflect the views or positions of the project donor; the Norwegian Refugee Council.

إخلاء المسؤولية: الآراء ووجهات النظر الواردة في هذا التقرير هي آراء ووجهات نظر مركز أبحاث الأراضي ولا تعكس بالضرورة وجهات نظر أو مواقف الجهة المانحة للمشروع؛ المجلس النرويجي. للاجئين

The attached images show settlers stealing olive harvests