Attempted weapon theft, stone-throwing, and dummy explosives: Olive harvest season approaches, tensions in the West Bank at a peak
The olive harvest season has not yet begun, but tensions in Judea and Samaria are already at a peak. Today, four unusual incidents were recorded: a confrontation in Jinta in which five left-wing activists were injured; an attempted weapon theft at the Beit Karim farm; a dummy explosive device with a Hamas flag near Talmon; and a stone-throwing incident in the village of Yasif that ended with the elimination of a terrorist and the entry of settlers into the village.
The olive harvest season has not yet begun, but tensions in Judea and Samaria reached a peak on Thursday with four unusual incidents. In the morning, about 30 left-wing activists arrived in the Jinta area near the Kochav Yehuda farm in Gush Etzion to assist Palestinian farmers in preparations for the harvest season. Upon their arrival, friction developed, and five activists were injured. Security forces dispersed those involved and evacuated the wounded; no suspects were arrested. In another incident in Binyamin, three Palestinians were harvesting in the grazing lands of the Beit Karim farm near Maoz Tzur. The security coordinator and residents asked them to leave, they refused, began throwing stones, and even attempted to steal a weapon. Two fled, the third was detained by the IDF. An Israeli civilian was lightly injured. Earlier, a suspicious object with a Hamas flag was reported in an open area near Talmon; Border Police sappers determined it was a dummy explosive. At 3:00 PM, stone-throwing at Israelis was reported at a water cistern near the illegal Anton outpost in Samaria. A 14-year-old boy was lightly injured. Police are investigating a claim of an attempt to "pull" the boy into the village of Yasif. IDF forces dispersed the disturbance and fired at the Palestinian rioters. The Red Crescent reported two injured, one of whom died of his wounds. Afterwards, settlers entered the village of Yasif and threw stones at residents; the IDF entered the village to locate suspects and remove the settlers. The Binyamin Council stated that harvesting cannot serve as cover for attacks and demanded advance preparation. Police and the IDF issued similar statements. The article notes that the harvest season, which will begin next Thursday, is expected to be particularly challenging due to more than 100 agricultural farms established in the past year, some bordering Palestinian agricultural areas. Data from the Farm Association indicates 1.1 million dunams in the farm areas. The security concept has shifted from perimeter defense around settlements to spatial defense of open areas. According to OCHA, in 2019 there were more than ten million olive trees in the territories, providing livelihoods for about 100,000 Palestinian families. Olive oil production dropped from 32,000 tons in 2022 to just 7,000 tons in 2025 — a decline of 75 percent.