Jewish extremists have carried out a series of attacks against Palestinian olive harvesters in the West Bank over the last two days, including one brutal assault in which the assailant clubbed a woman on her head, leaving her bleeding and severely injured.
In two incidents on Sunday morning, groups of Jewish extremists, likely settlers from nearby settlements and illegal outposts, attacked olive harvesters in the town of Turmus Ayya in the central West Bank, as well as the nearby village of al-Mughayyir.
At Turmus Ayya, a video shot by US-based writer Jasper Nathaniel showed a masked individual sporting tzitzit (a Jewish ritual garment) running up to Afaf Abu ‘Olia, a 52-year old woman from al-Mughayyir, and bludgeoning her on the head with a club.
Later videos showed Abu ‘Olia being lifted into a car to be taken away with blood running down the side of her face.
The same assailant is then seen beating two of the civil rights activists working with the Palestinian olive harvesters, reportedly injuring both of them.
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And at least three vehicles were set ablaze, allegedly by the settlers, at both locations.
Brutal settler attack in Turmus’ayya olive fields. Many injuries, including a woman knocked unconscious with a club and beaten repeatedly (2nd photo). The IDF lured us into an ambush, I have it all on video. Will upload as soon as I have good service. pic.twitter.com/RRF0pKDvK4
— jasper nathaniel (@infinite_jaz) October 19, 2025
The woman’s brother-in-law, Ayman Abu ‘Olia, 48, from the village of al-Mughayir, was also one of the Palestinians attacked in the Turmus Ayya area.
Ayman told The Times of Israel in a phone interview that he had gone to harvest olives on his family’s land and was in his car when the assault took place.
“We went on Sunday morning to pick olives in Area B [of the West Bank]. I’ve been harvesting olives there for 30 years. It’s not an area that Palestinians are forbidden to enter,” said Abu ‘Olia.
“About 45 settlers, masked and carrying clubs, smashed my car and beat me,” he said.
He eventually managed to drive away and escape, but said that the settlers later torched his vehicle. During the attack, he was beaten in the chest and arms and several of his fingers were broken. He was later taken for medical treatment at a hospital in Ramallah.
Ayman said Afaf remains in intensive care in a Ramallah hospital following the attack.
“She is not healthy, she has medical problems, which is why she couldn’t run away,” Ayman told The Times of Israel.
The IDF said in response that IDF and police forces were dispatched to the area after receiving reports of the attacks to deal with the violence.
“Earlier today, a report was received of disturbances that included vehicle arson and physical violence near the Shilo settlement, in the Samaria District, carried out by Israeli civilians,” the IDF said on Sunday.
Israeli soldiers stand guard as Palestinians harvest olives in the West Bank village of Turmus Ayya, on the outskirts of Ramallah, October 20, 2025. (Hazem BADER / AFP)
“Upon receiving the report, IDF and Israel Police forces rushed to the scene to disperse the disturbances. When forces arrived, the clash was dispersed,” it said, adding that the IDF was “working to enable the olive harvest to take place properly and safely for all residents” and that it “views this incident with great severity and strongly condemns violence of any kind.”
A spokesperson for the Israel Police’s Judea and Samaria District said that police have opened an investigation and that investigators went to the scene of the Turmus Ayya incident after the attacks to take evidence, and have collected the various videos documenting the violence.
There are several illegal settlement outposts close to Turmus Ayya, and residents of the Palestinian town have frequently complained of repeated settler violence emanating from those outpost, including Adei Ad, Esh Kodesh and Geulat Tzion.
BREAKING: Israeli settler terrorists are attacking the Christian village of Taybeh in the occupied West Bank, blocking its entrance and preventing residents from entering or leaving the town. pic.twitter.com/70ohNbZpBm
— Ihab Hassan (@IhabHassane) October 19, 2025
Prosecutions of Jewish extremists are, however rare, and convictions are even rarer.
Extremists, also apparently settlers, reportedly attacked Palestinian olive harvesters in the Christian town of Taybeh just north of Ramallah, interrupting the harvest efforts. The attack was condemned by local church leaders from the town.
Speaking to The Times of Israel, a resident of Taybe who witnessed the attack said that he saw settlers approach the olive pickers and assault them with wooden and iron clubs at around midday on Taybeh land.
The man, who wished to remain anonymous, said agricultural equipment was also stolen in the attack.
He said that the olive harvest was already projected to be poor this year since olive growers have not had proper access to their lands due to military restrictions and settler violence, and were therefore unable to properly care for the trees.
“Unfortunately the season is very weak, it is not a good season because we weren’t able to prepare the land properly. With the attacks of the settlers, this will be the third season we wont be able to properly harvest the olives. We will not have a lot of olive oil this year,” he said, adding that the settler attacks “put fear in the hearts of our people.”
Palestinians harvest olives in the West Bank village of Turmus Ayya, on the outskirts of Ramallah, October 20, 2025. (Hazem BADER / AFP)
Later, footage emerged of extremists blocking the entry to Taybeh. Activists said that the entrance to the town was blocked for some five hours, preventing residents from entering and leaving.
The Palestinian Authority’s WAFA news agency reported several incidents of harassment of olive pickers by settlers during the course of Monday at various places in the West Bank, including reports in some cases that the olives harvested were stolen.
The Peace Now organization said sarcastically in response to the incidents that “the olive harvest season has begun, as is traditional, with settler terrorism raising its head,” and accused the police and State Attorney’s Office of “zero enforcement” against Jewish extremists.
“Supporters of terrorism sit in the government of Israel, and these are the results,” said the organization.
In recent years, the olive harvest season, which is critical for the domestic economy of Palestinians living in rural towns and villages in the West Bank, has witnessed dozens of attacks by settler extremists against the olive growers and their laborers, in an apparent effort to make the industry non-viable.
In 2024, there were 113 incidents of violence and harassment by settlers and IDF soldiers against Palestinian olive growers and laborers in the six weeks of the harvest season, according to the Yesh Din organization, which campaigns against settler violence.
Of those incidents, 52 were occurrences of theft or damage to Palestinian property in which settlers stole crops and agricultural equipment, damaged property and set fire to vehicles.