Jewish settlers on Friday chopped down dozens of perennial olive trees in the lands of al-Jaba’a village southwest of Bethlehem.
Theyab Masha’leh the head of al-Jaba’a Council said that a group of settlers cut down dozens of olive trees that are over 60 years old in the Saqfan al-Dabaa area of Wadi al-Watout lands southeast of the village.
Masha’leh pointed out that the olive trees belonged to the citizen Rifaat al-Tus noting that the citizens were not able to reach the land to count the number of the trees which were cut.
The Israeli occupation authorities allow the Palestinian landowners to access their lands only twice a year when pruning trees and the other time during the olive harvest.
