A 55-year-old Palestinian woman has been taken to hospital after being clubbed over the head by a masked Jewish settler while she was picking olives in the Palestinian village of Turmus Ayya in the occupied West Bank. The unprovoked attack occurred on Sunday morning and was captured on video by US journalist Jasper Nathaniel. According to Mr. Nathaniel, the settler knocked the woman unconscious with the first swing of his wooden club before hitting her again as she lay on the ground. She has been identified locally as Umm Saleh Abu Alia.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) reported that they arrived at the scene and dispelled any confrontation, asserting that they strongly condemn any form of violence by settlers. However, Mr. Nathaniel alleged that Israeli soldiers were present before the assault and had facilitated a setup that led to the attack, a claim the BBC has directed to the IDF for response.
Umm Saleh was transported to a hospital and initially placed in intensive care but is now stable. Her cousin revealed that she had been struck twice in the head during the brutal incident. Additional reports indicate that at least 15 masked settlers were involved in attacking other Palestinians harvesting olives and damaging property.
This violence coincides with the olive harvest season, crucial to Palestinian culture and economy, which began on October 9. Farmers in the West Bank are facing increasing dangers during this period, including harassment and violence from settlers, alongside restrictions imposed by Israeli authorities that impact their access to their lands.
The UN's humanitarian office documented 71 settler attacks across the West Bank between October 7 and 13, with half linked to ongoing harvesting efforts affecting 27 different villages. In a climatic year, over 3,200 Palestinians have reportedly sustained injuries from settler violence in the West Bank this year alone.
As the world witnesses such aggression, the call for accountability grows stronger, but the vast majority of these actions remain unpunished, raising questions about the effectiveness of legal recourse in cases of settler violence.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) reported that they arrived at the scene and dispelled any confrontation, asserting that they strongly condemn any form of violence by settlers. However, Mr. Nathaniel alleged that Israeli soldiers were present before the assault and had facilitated a setup that led to the attack, a claim the BBC has directed to the IDF for response.
Umm Saleh was transported to a hospital and initially placed in intensive care but is now stable. Her cousin revealed that she had been struck twice in the head during the brutal incident. Additional reports indicate that at least 15 masked settlers were involved in attacking other Palestinians harvesting olives and damaging property.
This violence coincides with the olive harvest season, crucial to Palestinian culture and economy, which began on October 9. Farmers in the West Bank are facing increasing dangers during this period, including harassment and violence from settlers, alongside restrictions imposed by Israeli authorities that impact their access to their lands.
The UN's humanitarian office documented 71 settler attacks across the West Bank between October 7 and 13, with half linked to ongoing harvesting efforts affecting 27 different villages. In a climatic year, over 3,200 Palestinians have reportedly sustained injuries from settler violence in the West Bank this year alone.
As the world witnesses such aggression, the call for accountability grows stronger, but the vast majority of these actions remain unpunished, raising questions about the effectiveness of legal recourse in cases of settler violence.
