Olive Harvest - Soldiers Interrupt Harvest at Kufr Qalil

Today at 6am I arrived at Huwarra checkpoint, to meet some people from ISM in Nablus to accompany a family from Kafr Qalil, which is right beside Huwarra, while they harvested their olives. This family requested accompaniment because in past years they have been physically attacked while harvesting, by settlers from the nearby Bracha settlement.

One family member had their jaw broken. Also the family decided to start now, rather than wait until after Ramadan (which means long hours of work with no food or water - a true test of the limits of solidarity), because in past years their olives have also been stolen by settlers. In
fact yesterday some of the ISM people with them had to approach settlers who were taking bags full of fruit from the fruit trees belonging to the same family.

Anyway after 3-4 hrs of olive picking we spotted 3 soldiers approaching from down the hill, the direction of the checkpoint. The farmer, myself and another international woman approached them and were told that the family could not harvest today as they had not consulted with the army
first to arrange it. We argued with this - the family were picking their own olives on their own land. Also an Israeli High Court recently ruled that all farmers should be given access to all their land everywhere, and that the army had to protect them from harassment from settlers (when I mentioned this the soldier said “no, I protect the Jew, always”). However, an area can be declared a ‘closed military zone’, by a brigade commander or higher, for specified ‘security’ reasons, for a specified time and in an area no larger than necessary. These are areas
of supposed special security risks, which can be closed temporarily and in which, if I am correct, arrangement with the army is needed - however the emphasis of the decision is on the army facilitating and protecting farmers’ access to their land.

So we began calling Rabbis For Human Rights, the Red Cross in Nablus and the Israeli DCO. The DCO was procrastinating, and the Rabbis were confused about whether we were in one of the zones mentioned above (are we to the north or the south of the settlement rd?...it seems to double
back on itself...). And meanwhile the 3 soldiers were insisting that the family leave the land now and ask questions later, so they packed up, loaded the olives picked so far on to their donkey, and started moving
towards home.

I wondered why the family were so ready to leave when told, but later the farmer told us that once, after he fought with a settler who came to attack him while he was harvesting, the army came into his house at 2am
every night for a week.

Knowing this, and thinking about their other previous experiences with settler violence, I can understand their
reluctance to engage in direct resistance.

So we adjourned to the family’s house to play that most familiar of Palestinian games........ waiting.............
2 hours later, after multiple phone calls between the family, us, the red cross, the rabbis and the DCO, it turned out that no, the family did not need to have sought permission, and yes, they should be able to start again tomorrow. Unbelievably the DCO even apologised for the
soldiers having chased them off their land. But over half a day was lost, and the family have little reason to trust that the information will be relayed to everyone concerned and they will be left alone tomorrow. But they will get up and do it all again.

What other option do they have?

International Women’s Peace Service (IWPS)
Hares, Salfit
Telephone: 09 251 66 44
Website: http://www.iwps-pal.org