The olive harvest season transforms Palestinians into bards, singers and poets. But Israel's settler rampaging through the Palestinian neighbourhoods has been threatening the centuries-old tradition.
Abu Jamal Abu Tuaimah’s eyes light up when he talks about olive trees and the festival that marks the beginning of harvest season in the Gaza Strip.
“Every year, we participate in the weeklong harvest festival. We absolutely relish this holiday, enjoying the novelty of meals with our families in the groves,” says Abu Jamal, from Khan Younis, south of the Gaza Strip. Palestinians also use the branches of olive trees to symbolise peace. Singers, poets and even political leaders often refer to the olive branch when making overtures to cease hostilities.
Farmers and their trees are subject to continuous Israeli violations. Olive gatherings have taken place in the shadow of massive land-grabs by the Israeli occupation as well as restrictions imposed by Israel on access to the plots that remain. In addition, occupation forces spray toxic chemicals on vast tracts of agricultural lands planted by Palestinians in Gaza in an effort to damage standing crops.
In 2014, an estimated 108,000 tons of olives were squeezed, producing 24,700 tons of oil, which generated an estimated $10,900,000 in revenue. About 100,000 families depend on olives as their primary income.
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