Jocelyn Qassis _ April 2026 In recent days, the areas of Harasa and Ush al-Ghurab in Beit Sahour have witnessed a disturbing surge in settler gang activity, marking a significant escalation in the ongoing violence against Palestinian communities. These acts of aggression, ranging from the destruction of agricultural livelihoods to direct attacks on homes, are […]
Jocelyn Qassis / April 2026 Khallet Al-Nu’man, a small Palestinian village located east of Bethlehem, has become increasingly isolated in recent years due to movement restrictions, lack of services, and repeated settler attacks. The village is home to around 150 residents, including approximately 40 children. Although it was annexed by Israel in 1967 into what […]
– March 2026 – The Green Olive Collective strongly condemns the recent approval by the Israeli Knesset of legislation enabling the execution of Palestinian prisoners. This decision marks a dangerous and unprecedented escalation, not only in its legal implications but in what it represents: the normalization of state-sanctioned killing under the guise of law. It […]
Yahav Zohar / April 2026 This April fools’ day, more than a month into the American-Israeli attack on Iran, it is time to ask, who are the fools in this story? Going into the war, we were told of two goals- to remove the oppressive Iranian regime and to destroy Iran’s nuclear program. A month […]
Jocelyn Qassis / March 2026 Palm Sunday arrives this year under a sky heavy with uncertainty. In a region shaped by ongoing tension, the familiar sounds of celebration church bells, hymns, and processions feel more subdued. What is usually a day of public joy is now unfolding quietly, shaped by restriction and absence. In Jerusalem, […]
Yahav Zohar / March 2026 Last Friday and Saturday, at the new moon, Muslims celebrated the Eid al Fitr holiday. Traditionally, in Palestine this is a time to visit relatives, share meals and exchange gifts, but for many in the West Bank celebrations were marred by the threat of Iranian missiles and escalating settler violence. […]
Yahav Zohar / March 2026 Sitting at my desk in Jerusalem, looking at the lovely spring outside, occasionally the windowpane shakes in its frame. High above interceptor missiles are exploding, trying to stop an Iranian missile heading toward Tel Aviv. Once every few hours the interceptions are particularly close and a siren goes off and […]
Yahav Zohar / March 2026 Israelis whose work is not considered “vital” were mostly at home for the first days of this war. Like the first days of the pandemic, it was a good time to tend one’s home and garden, clean out drawers and closets, and catch up on correspondence. By now, day 11, […]
by Jocelyn Qassis , March 2026 Honouring the Women of Palestine and the Middle East on International Women’s Day In Palestine, the story of the land cannot be told without the women who have carried it across generations. They are the farmers who rise before sunrise to tend ancient olive groves. They are the teachers […]
As missiles, drones, rockets, ballistics, and counter-ballistics collide in the skies above us, we stand united against this war of aggression. Like all those living in the region or observing it with any attention, members of the Green Olive Collective know that bombing is not the way democracy, stability, justice, or collective freedom are built. […]
by Jocelyn Qassis , March 2026 From Escalation to Entrenchment In the months following October 7, 2023, mobility across the West Bank tightened in ways that were immediately visible yet historically familiar. Entrances to Palestinian towns were sealed with earth mounds and metal gates. Flying checkpoints appeared without warning along major transport corridors linking northern […]
by Jocelyn Qassis , March 2026 “When they burned the hives, it wasn’t just honey we lost.” At sunrise in the hills south of Hebron, a beekeeper lifts the lid of a wooden hive. The air is sharp with thyme. Bees rise and settle in a controlled hum. Inside, order prevails: wax foundations, carefully formed […]
