NEW YORK CITY (Press Release) — Following the detention of approximately 90 Israeli and international volunteers, including New York congressional nominee Brad Lander, by Israeli military forces while accompanying Palestinian farmers during the olive harvest near Bethlehem, Mickey Gitzin, Acting CEO of the New Israel Fund, made the following statement:
“Harvesting olives is not a crime. Detaining peaceful volunteers who are helping Palestinian farmers access their own land is an outrageous misuse of Israel’s authority in the West Bank. These detentions are part of a system whose purpose is to make life harder for Palestinians in the West Bank to stay on their land, to make a living, and simply live. It was not for nothing that these volunteers traveled halfway around the world. They were there because, without their presence, this system of forced displacement and Jewish terror would simply continue unchecked. So they came to stand in peaceful solidarity with Palestinian farmers as they harvest olive groves that have belonged to their families for generations and to serve as a protective presence.
“There is no threat to Israel’s security in helping Palestinian farmers safely access their land, harvest their crops, and support their families. Rather than protecting Palestinian communities from violent settlers who have been allowed to run roughshod over Israeli law, not to mention international law, Israeli forces have detained the very people who came to hold that violence at bay. This detention sends a clear message: Settler violence can be allowed to continue—against Palestinians, journalists, and as we saw last weekend, even diplomats—with maximum impunity, but peaceful solidarity with Palestinians must be stopped.
“As reports circulate that Israeli authorities are now considering deporting international volunteers – many of whom are Jewish – we should be clear: that would be outrageous. It would do nothing to make Israel safer. Deporting people for peacefully harvesting olives alongside Palestinian farmers would be unacceptable, period. This is not how a democracy behaves. These are the actions of a police state.
“The New Israel Fund is proud to support Protect the Harvest and the Israelis, Palestinians, and international volunteers working nonviolently to protect Palestinian communities and build a more just future for everyone.”
Protect the Harvest is an international coalition bringing volunteers to the West Bank during the annual olive harvest to work alongside Palestinian farmers, provide a solidarity presence, and help communities safely access and harvest their land. The New Israel Fund is a sponsor of the campaign.
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Preceding provided by the New Israel Fund