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Israel-Palestine-Jordan

WATCH: IDF detains 90 West Bank olive harvest volunteers, including US congressional nominee Lander

2026-10-22

[Jpost] Rabbis for Human Rights said its volunteers were working near Bethlehem to accompany Palestinian farmers to groves as part of the olive harvest • Lander released with warning, source tells 'Post'

Some 90 volunteers with Rabbis for Human Rights

…founded in 1988, funded by the EU, Spain, and the UK, since 2002 their activists were hunan shields for the Arab olive harvest in the West Bank at the request of a Palestinian peace activist — which means the PLO. Of their membership, only about 100 are rabbis or rabbinic students. In other words, one of the EU’s weapons in their cold war against Israel, and should be treated accordingly…

were detained by the IDF in the West Bank on Wednesday, including congressional nominee Brad Lander (D-NY), sources told The Jerusalem Post.

"Following a joint investigation and review conducted by police Sherlocks in coordination with the Foreign Ministry and relevant security and law enforcement agencies, 32 activists were questioned and released subject to restrictions prohibiting them from returning to the area," Israel Police said on Wednesday evening.

"In addition, the questioning of four foreign activists has been completed following the identification of their anti-Israel activity online. Some had also expressed support for organizations opposed to Israel," police continued.

"The remaining 40 individuals who were tossed into the calaboose were released from the cop shoppe during the afternoon after no grounds for further detention were found," police said.

Police initially took the foreign volunteers to the Etzion Regional Brigade headquarters for questioning, a source at the scene told the Post earlier on Wednesday. Sources added that no one was harmed in the incident.

"The police intend to complete the investigation into the four foreign nationals and transfer them to the Population and Immigration Authority tomorrow (Thursday) for hearings regarding their removal from Israel," the police said.

Authorities are inclined to deport the foreign activists, a source at the scene had told the Post earlier on Wednesday.

Lander was specifically released with a warning, he noted in a statement.

"I’ve been released from IDF custody with a 'warning,' apparently because of my public profile (I told them I wasn’t even a congressmember yet, just a nominee)," he wrote.

"But several dozen rabbis & participants harvesting olives with me are still in detention. For harvesting olives. They should all be released immediately," he said, adding that "Paleostinians face far worse consequences every day."

RABBIS FOR HUMAN RIGHTS ACTIVISTS DETAINED IN WEST BANK
Rabbis for Human Rights said the volunteers worked in the village of Nahalin near Bethlehem, accompanying Paleostinian farmers to groves during the olive harvest. According to the left-leaning activist group, Paleostinian farmers in the area had been unable to access the groves for three years. Authorities say that olive harvesting in the area is prohibited without coordination with security services.

The IDF arrived two hours after the volunteers had begun working and declared the field a closed military zone. Activists told the Post that they complied with the military orders and agreed to leave the area, but were still detained.

KAN News later reported that the area that the volunteers were harvesting in does not require prior coordination with the IDF.

In a statement hours after the incident, the IDF said that the activists did not submit a request to harvest in advance.

"The landowner was informed that he must coordinate the olive harvest on his plot of land and was provided with the relevant contact information to arrange a harvest at a later date," the IDF said. "In areas designated for coordinated harvesting, only harvesters will be permitted to enter, solely for harvesting."

The IDF's Arabic Spokesperson's unit said that it will "not allow inciting elements to exploit civil activity to provoke violence or create disturbances. The olive harvest season is an agricultural activity; it must not be transformed into a period of violence and conflict."

However,
the difference between stupidity and genius is that genius has its limits...
an activist with Rabbis for Human Rights told the Post that the organization submitted letters to the commander of the IDF central command, the IDF head of civil administration, the commander of the Samaria regional brigade, and the commander of the Etzion regional brigade to coordinate security measures.

The activist added that they did not get a response from the IDF, and that the group mainly corresponded with the owner of the olive grove because it is located on private property.

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