The removal of hundreds of olive trees in the West Bank by Israeli military bulldozers has raised concerns about forced evictions

In the presence of the Israeli army, multiple bulldozers entered the West Bank village of Almugaye on Sunday (August 24th), uprooting hundreds of olive trees. This action not only severely damaged the economic crops that the local area relies on for survival, but also drew accusations from the residents that its intention was to force them to move away.

AFP photographers on the scene saw that a large number of olive trees were lying across the overturned land. Several bulldozers were working on the hills around the village, one of which was flying an Israeli flag. Military vehicles were parked nearby.

Abalia, the head of the local agricultural association, criticized, "The goal is to control and force the residents to leave." This is just the beginning. In the future, it may expand to the entire West Bank.

Local residents said that the earth-moving operation began on August 21st. A Palestinian non-governmental organization said that 14 villagers have been arrested in the past three days.

The Israeli army responded that it was investigating the matter. But according to a statement released by the Israeli side last Friday (the 22nd), a man from this village has been arrested and accused of being "responsible for a terrorist attack". On August 16th, the Palestinian side reported that an 18-year-old youth was shot dead by the Israeli army in this village. The Israeli military explained that at that time, the force was responding to the act of "terrorists throwing stones", but did not directly link it to the death incident.

Another video exposed on the same day shows that the top commander of the Israeli West Bank, Brut, vowed that "every village and every enemy will pay a heavy price for attacking Israelis." He warned that the villages involved might face curfews, lockdowns and so-called "terrain modification operations" to achieve a deterrent effect.

Since the outbreak of the Israel-Kazakhstan War, violent actions in the West Bank have escalated sharply. Palestinian data shows that at least 971 Palestinians have been killed by the Israeli army or settlers so far. During the same period, official data shows that at least 36 Israelis were killed in attacks or military operations in the West Bank.

Since 1967, Israel has been occupying the West Bank. There are currently about 3 million Palestinians and 500,000 Israeli settlers in this area. The settlements of the latter are regarded as illegal under international law.