The Palestinian Authority called for international intervention to end violations against Palestinians in the occupied territories. Mahmoud Abbas also ordered the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) to be called into an emergency meeting to provide Palestinians with international protection.
In a written statement, the Palestinian Foreign Ministry said the decision was taken after an increase in attacks by Israeli settlers and Israeli soldiers against Palestinians.
Call for deterrent measures from the UNSC
Palestinian Presidency spokesman Nabil Abu Rudeineh said the UNSC must act immediately to provide international protection for the Palestinian people. Abu Rudeineh called on the council to adopt deterrent measures to prevent attacks by Israeli settlers and violations by Israeli forces.
Abu Rudeineh said 19 attacks targeting farmers, olive harvesters and property had been recorded since Friday morning. Saying that the attacks had expanded in scope, Abu Rudeineh said Palestinians’ livelihoods were being directly targeted.
Olive harvest at risk in the West Bank
The olive harvest season in the occupied West Bank faces serious risks because of increasing attacks by Israeli settlers and restrictions imposed by the Israeli army. The losses suffered by Palestinian farmers extend beyond being unable to harvest a single season’s crop.
Prolonged lack of access to the land causes olive trees to dry out and prevents them from being maintained. The harvest season, which carries economic and social importance for Palestinians, is taking place amid concerns for their safety.
According to the figures, 750,000 Jewish settlers live in 156 settlements and 360 settlement units in the West Bank and East Jerusalem. The United Nations considers Israeli settlements in the occupied Palestinian territories contrary to international law.
According to data from the Council for Combating the Separation Wall and Jewish Settlements, Israeli settlers have carried out more than 14,742 attacks in the West Bank since October 2023.
These attacks killed 66 Palestinians and destroyed, burned or uprooted a total of 147,111 trees, including 100,485 olive trees.
Palestinian killed in Hebron
According to a statement from the Palestinian Red Crescent, Israeli soldiers opened fire on 32-year-old Shadi Ahmed Ibrahim Acarime at the Nabi Yunus Junction in Hebron, in the West Bank.
Acarime was killed, and the soldiers reportedly withheld his body.
