Israel: Making the Holy Land burn

The article argues that Israeli policies have damaged Palestinian land and ecosystems alongside displacing Palestinians, challenging Israel’s claims of environmental expertise. It says the destruction of olive trees, water resources and traditional agriculture has weakened Palestinian communities’ ability to sustain themselves.

The article reports that 4,500 olive trees were damaged or uprooted in the occupied West Bank during the first month of the current harvest season, and 100,000 have been destroyed there since January. It says 97 per cent of Gaza’s two million olive trees have been wiped out since October 2023, and that more than 800,000 trees were destroyed between 1967 and the 2010s. It also describes imported tree species, changes to waterways and the diversion of water from Palestinian communities to Israeli settlements.