# Olive harvest season, Israeli elections bring sharp increase in attacks

> Israeli elections and olive harvest season spike West Bank attacks on Palestinians.
- Title: Olive harvest season, Israeli elections bring sharp increase…
- Summary: Israeli elections and olive harvest season spike West Bank attacks on Palestinians. olive harvest, west bank, palestinians · reported by Straight Arrow.
- Keywords: olive harvest, west bank, palestinians, israeli elections, settlements, benny netanyahu, acled, news, politics, world, Olive, harvest
- Source: Straight Arrow — https://san.com/cc/olive-harvest-season-israeli-elections-bring-sharp-increase-in-attacks-on-palestinians-in-west-bank
- Published: 2026-10-18T21:48:56+00:00
- Read time: 1 min
- Topics: olive harvest, west bank, palestinians, israeli elections, settlements, benny netanyahu, acled, news, politics, world
## Olive harvest season starts
Every October begins olive harvest season for Palestinians in West Bank.
## Sharp rise in attacks
ACLED recorded 460 incidents of settler violence against Palestinians in West Bank from Oct 1-12, 2026.
## Violence levels
38 incidents a day in October versus 20 a day in September.
## Recent attacks
Settlers burned cars in olive groves and attacked villagers in eight West Bank villages.
## Abu Falah attack
80 masked settlers attacked villagers with slings, burned olive trees and chased journalists.
## Journalist injured
Washington Post journalist Heidi Levine hospitalized with lacerations, broken rib and four broken vertebrae.
## Settlers beat journalist
Settlers clubbed, kicked and robbed Washington Post journalist Heidi Levine.
## IDF response
Israeli military dispatched forces to disperse confrontation using riot dispersal means.
## Settlers shot Palestinian
IDF shot Palestinian council member Abed Aljaber Obied during confrontation.
## Olive harvest significance
10 million olive trees on 332 miles of land in West Bank, 47% of agricultural area.
## Economic impact
80,000 to 100,000 Palestinians depend on olives for income.
## Election impact
Israeli elections on Oct 27 could continue settlement expansion in West Bank.
## Netanyahu's stance
Netanyahu called settler violence a 'handful of rioters' not representative of all settlers.
## What happens next
New Israeli government may struggle to reverse settlement expansion and farming outposts.
## Key takeaway

Israeli elections and olive harvest season have increased attacks on Palestinians in West Bank with 460 incidents recorded by ACLED between Oct 1-12, 2026.