Settlers uproot 53 olive trees in Qalqiliya, attack farmer

Israeli settlers on Tuesday uprooted 53 olive trees in Kafr Laqif village West of Qalqiliya, officials said. Ghassan Douglas, a Palestinian Authority official who monitors settlement activities in the Northern West Bank, said that a number of Israeli settlers from the Karni Shomron settlement uprooted around 53 olive trees belonging to Suleiman Jaber, Ma'an reported. In a separate incident, Israeli settlers from the Yitzhar settlement assaulted and beat a Palestinian man, Mohammad al-Zein, from Burin village South of Nablus. At the time of the attack, al-Zein was cultivating his land. He suffered from various wounds as a result of the assault. Israeli settler attacks on Palestinians increase markedly during the annual olive harvest, when settlers frequently attempt to prevent Palestinians from reaching their land. The Israeli military often protects Israeli settlers who target Palestinians. Additionally, Israeli forces also target those Palestinians who respond to settler attacks. More than 500,000 Israeli settlers live in settlements across the West Bank and East Jerusalem, in contravention of international law. The internationally recognized Palestinian territories of which the West Bank and East Jerusalem form a part have been occupied by the Israeli military since 1967.