Watch: Israeli settlers attack Palestinian olive farmers in West Bank, torch cars

Over the past two days, at least three Israeli settler attacks on Palestinian olive farmers have been reported in the occupied West Bank.

Settlers have assaulted olive farmers and torched vehicles in the central West Bank town of Turmus Ayya, the nearby village of al-Mughayyir, and the Palestinian Christian town of Taybeh near Ramallah, the de facto capital of the West Bank, according to Palestinian sources and independent reporting.

In video footage of one of the attacks, a masked Israeli settler wearing a tzitzit —a Jewish ritual garment— is seen repeatedly striking an elderly Palestinian woman on the head. The woman is said to be receiving treatment in an intensive care unit.

In the ongoing wave of Israeli settler violence against Palestinians in the West Bank, which has surged since 2023, this latest attack appears to be specifically aimed at disrupting olive farming — critical the economy in Palestinian villages and rural towns.

According to a United Nations (UN) report, there are at least 147 Israeli settlements and 224 outposts in the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem where around 730,000 Jewish settlers live. These settlements and outposts are considered illegal under international law and occupy around 40 per cent of the West Bank.

Israeli settlers’ rampage in West Bank

In the latest wave of violence, Israeli settlers were caught on camera attacking Palestinian farmers and their vehicles.

On Sunday, settlers from nearby Jewish settlements and outposts attacked olive farmers in Turmus Ayya and the nearly village of al-Mughayyir, according to The Times of Israel.

In footage captured by American writer Jasper Nathaniel, a settler wearing a tzitzit is seen repeatedly assaulting a woman, identified as 52-year-old Afaf Abu Olia, striking her on the head. She was left bleeding and severely injured.

Settlers also set at least three vehicles ablaze, according to ToI.

Afaf’s brother-in-law, Ayman Abu ‘Olia, 48, who was also among those attacked, told ToI that he had gone to harvest olives on his family’s land and was inside his car when the settlers launched their assault. He said at least 45 settlers were involved.

Ayman said, “We went on Sunday morning to pick olives in Area B [of the West Bank]. I’ve been harvesting olives there for 30 years. It’s not an area that Palestinians are forbidden to enter. About 45 settlers, masked and carrying clubs, smashed my car and beat me.”

Ayman added that Afaf was in intensive care at a hospital in Ramallah and noted that she could not flee due to her poor health.

In a third incident, locals reported that Israeli settlers attacked Palestinian olive farmers in the Christian town of Taybeh, located just north of Ramallah.

A local witness, who requested anonymity, told ToI that settlers approached olive-pickers around midday and assaulted them with wooden and iron clubs. The man said they also stole agricultural equipment.

The witness noted that the olive produce was ready for harvest even before the attacks began.

“Unfortunately, the season is very weak. It is not a good season because we weren’t able to prepare the land properly. With the attacks of the settlers, this will be the third season we won’t be able to properly harvest the olives. We will not have a lot of olive oil this year,” the witness told the newspaper.

The attacks have “put fear in the hearts of our people”, the witness added.

Rising settler attacks in West Bank

Since 2023, when the Hamas-led attack on Israel triggered the war in Gaza, Israeli settler violence against Palestinians in the West Bank has escalated to unprecedented levels.

Between October 2023 and October 2025, there have been at least 2,946 settler attacks on Palestinians in the West Bank, according to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA).

These attacks continue to rise. Last year, there were 1,449 incidents, and there have already been 1,069 attacks this year. For comparison, fewer than 500 attacks were recorded annually between 2015 and 2020.

The attacks have included physical assaults, shootings, arson, uprooting of olive trees and other agricultural damage, and theft of agricultural equipment and livestock.

So far this year, at least five Palestinians have been killed and 473 injured in settler attacks, according to OCHA.