West Bank ecocide: Israeli bulldozers uproot hundreds of olive trees
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Israeli aggression in the West Bank escalates as bulldozers, backed by the military, uproot hundreds of Palestinian olive trees in al-Mughayyir.
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A Palestinian man looks at olive trees reportedly uprooted by Israeli soldiers using a bulldozer in the occupied West Bank village of Al-Mughayyir, north of Ramallah, on August 24, 2025 (AFP)
In yet another act of Israeli aggression, bulldozers, under the protection of Israeli occupation forces, uprooted hundreds of trees in the West Bank village of al-Mughayyir on Sunday, AFP reported.
Most of the destroyed vegetation was olive trees, a cornerstone of the economy and culture in Palestine, where groves have long been flashpoints for confrontation between Palestinian farmers and encroaching Israeli settlers.
Local farmer Abdelatif Mohammed Abu Aliya told AFP he lost olive trees more than 70 years old on nearly one hectare of land. “They completely uprooted and levelled them under false pretences,” he explained, adding that farmers had already begun replanting.
Read more: 'They want all Palestine': Palestinian farmer laments burnt olive crop
On-the-ground images showed overturned soil, uprooted olive trees, and bulldozers operating on the surrounding hills. One machine carried an Israeli flag, while military vehicles stood nearby.
“The goal is control and forcing people to leave. This is just the beginning; it will expand across the entire West Bank,” Ghassan Abu Aliya, who heads a local agricultural association, said to AFP.
Residents said the bulldozing began on Thursday, August 21. According to a Palestinian NGO, 14 were arrested over the past three days.
Israeli military presence and local arrests
When asked about the destruction, the Israeli army told AFP it was “looking into the matter.” On Friday, the army claimed to have arrested a settler accused of involvement in a nearby attack.
Just days earlier, the Palestinian Authority reported that an 18-year-old had been shot and killed by Israeli forces in al-Mughayyir. The army claimed its troops had responded to stones thrown by “terrorists” but did not directly acknowledge the youth’s death.
In a widely circulated video, senior West Bank commander Avi Bluth vowed to make “every village and every enemy… pay a heavy price,” warning of curfews, sieges, and “terrain-shaping actions” as punitive measures.
Escalating violence in the West Bank amid Gaza war
The bulldozing comes amid heightened Israeli aggression across the occupied West Bank, which has witnessed escalating violence since the start of the war on Gaza in October 2023.
According to Palestinian Authority figures compiled by AFP, at least 971 Palestinians, both civilians and militants, have been killed by "Israel" in the West Bank since then. In the same period, official Israeli data reports at least 36 Israelis killed in attacks or operations in the territory.
The West Bank, occupied by "Israel" since 1967, is home to about three million Palestinians and roughly 500,000 settlers living in settlements deemed illegal under international law.
Read more: Netanyahu deliberately derailing truce with Gaza occupation: Hamas
