UN experts demand Israel protect farmers in West Bank amid rising settler attacks

Seven UN experts called on Israel to protect Palestinian farmers in the West Bank as the olive harvest season begins, amid rising settler attacks. The UN documented 178 attacks in the 2025 season and the destruction of over 6,000 trees, the highest in six years.

Seven UN experts, including the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the occupied Palestinian territories and the Special Rapporteur on the right to food, called on Israel to fulfill its obligations under international law and protect Palestinian farmers in the West Bank. The call came amid rising settler attacks as the olive harvest season begins. The experts, speaking in their personal capacity and not representing the organization, warned that the olive harvest season "should not again turn into a season of fear, losses, violence, and destruction." The UN noted the documentation of 178 attacks carried out by settlers during the 2025 olive harvest season, affecting 88 Palestinian towns and villages, and the destruction of over 6,000 trees, the highest number in six years. The experts also expressed deep concern over orders they said Israeli military authorities issued in September to clear vegetation on an area of about 339,000 square meters of land.