Israeli military detains 80 volunteers including U.S. congressional candidate at West Bank olive harvest. The detentions occurred as activists and rabbis helped Palestinians harvest olives near Nahalin, a area near an Israeli settlement in the occupied West Bank.
The detentions involved U.S. Democratic congressional candidate Brad Lander, Israeli former deputy attorney general Joshua Schoffman, and American rabbis from the T’ruah group. Israeli security forces declared a closed military zone around the olive grove, separating volunteers by nationality and detaining them near a police station.
The Israeli military said the area was declared a closed military zone to coordinate security and public order. Palestinian farmers have faced rising threats from settler attacks, making olive harvesting increasingly dangerous. The detentions mark the largest mass detention of activists in the occupied West Bank in at least a decade.
Israeli military officials did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Lander, a vocal critic of Israeli policies, described the detentions as an attempt by the Israeli military to prevent Palestinians from harvesting their olive trees.