Israeli bulldozers rolled into the West Bank village of al-Mughayyir on Sunday, August 24, 2025, uprooting hundreds of olive trees as Israeli military vehicles stood nearby, according to AFP journalists and local witnesses. The scene—overturned soil, ancient olive branches strewn across the hillsides, and the rumble of heavy machinery—left residents reeling, not just from the loss of their livelihoods, but from what many see as a deepening campaign to reshape the land and its people.
“They completely uprooted and levelled them under false pretenses,” said Abdelatif Mohammed Abu Aliya, a local farmer, speaking to AFP about the destruction of trees that were over 70 years old on his hectare of land. He and his neighbors have already started replanting, a gesture of resilience in the face of what they believe is an orchestrated effort to drive them out. Ghassan Abu Aliya, who heads a local agricultural association, was blunt: “The goal is control and forcing people to leave. This is just the beginning – it will expand across the entire West Bank.”
The bulldozing, which began the previous Thursday, was not an isolated event. According to a Palestinian NGO, 14 people were arrested in al-Mughayyir over the three days leading up to Sunday. The Israeli army, when questioned by AFP, said they were looking into the matter, but had already issued a statement on Friday announcing the arrest of a man from the village accused of being “responsible for a terrorist attack” nearby.
The atmosphere in al-Mughayyir has been tense for weeks. On August 16, an 18-year-old resident was shot and killed by the Israeli army, which claimed its forces had responded to stones thrown by “terrorists,” though they did not directly connect the young man’s death to any specific incident. The local community, meanwhile, continues to mourn—and to brace for more violence.
In a video widely shared in Israeli media last Friday, Avi Bluth, the Israeli military’s top commander in the West Bank, issued a chilling warning: “Every village and every enemy ... [will] pay a heavy price” for attacks against Israelis. He outlined potential measures including curfews, sieges, and what he called “terrain shaping actions”—the kind of operation witnessed in al-Mughayyir. The message was clear: collective punishment is on the table.
These developments are set against a broader backdrop of escalating violence in the West Bank since the October 7, 2023, Hamas attack on Israel. According to AFP figures based on Palestinian Authority data, at least 971 Palestinians—both militants and civilians—have been killed by Israeli soldiers or settlers in the West Bank since then. In the same period, at least 36 Israelis, both civilians and soldiers, have died in attacks or military operations in the territory, according to official Israeli sources. The West Bank, occupied by Israel since 1967, is now home to about three million Palestinians and some 500,000 Israeli settlers living in communities considered illegal under international law.
The events in al-Mughayyir are not happening in a vacuum. Just days earlier, on August 20, 2025, Israel intensified its military campaign in Gaza City, home to at least a million people—half of Gaza’s population. The Israel Defense Forces issued an evacuation order, forcing families to abandon not just their homes, but even the emergency tents that had become their last refuge. According to The National, former Israeli intelligence, security, and political officials warn that what began as a campaign to suppress Hamas could end in the mass expulsion of Palestinians from Gaza.
“This could be a tactic to put pressure on Hamas, but it could also be Netanyahu-Ben Gvir-Smotrich's real plan to vacate Gaza and place Israelis in their place,” former hostage negotiator Gershon Baskin told The National. He referred to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and two prominent far-right ministers, Itamar Ben-Gvir and Bezalel Smotrich, whose policies have come under increasing scrutiny. Baskin added, “Regardless of whether the Gaza City plan begins with the intention of scaring Hamas, the results are real and will encourage the expulsion of Palestinians from the Gaza Strip by moving them to the southwest of Gaza.”
The southern part of Gaza is already among the most densely populated places on Earth, with United Nations data showing 40,000 people per square kilometer. “Israel wants to create tremendous pressure there and wait for its explosion; and people cross the border to Sinai and carry out ethnic cleansing in Gaza,” Baskin warned.
Meanwhile, the Israeli Cabinet has approved plans to take over Gaza City, effectively reoccupying Gaza 20 years after Israel withdrew and dismantled its settlements there. At the same time, Israel is moving forward with a controversial settlement expansion project in the West Bank. On August 20, a planning committee signed off on the construction of 3,400 homes in the E1 area east of Jerusalem, a move that would link the West Bank to the large Ma’ale Adumim settlement and, critics say, effectively sever the territory and destroy hopes for a contiguous Palestinian state. According to The National, this project is seen as a pressure tactic against Western countries moving toward Palestinian recognition.
Former Israeli officials are sounding the alarm about the broader implications. Eran Etzion, the former head of Israel’s National Security Council, told The National that Prime Minister Netanyahu is “fully committed to a comprehensive strategy to destroy the two-state solution, first in Gaza and then the West Bank.” Etzion further claimed, “His true view of the hostages is 'additional damage', and he views their political release as a political threat.”
With internal pressure mounting in Israel—from street protests to anguished families of hostages—some believe that only outside intervention can halt the current trajectory. Ami Ayalon, former head of Israel’s Security Agency, told The National, “The idea of conquering Gaza comes as a means of pressure, but now, without external intervention, to me it seems to be a terrible reality. America can stop it, and they have the power to do it.”
Amid these warnings, a glimmer of hope for a ceasefire emerged. Hamas has reportedly agreed to a deal similar to one Israel previously approved, including a 60-day truce and the release of hostages and prisoners. However, Israel’s response has been delayed, leaving the fate of both the ceasefire and the hostages uncertain.
The human toll continues to mount. As of August 22, 2025, the death count in the conflict has surpassed 62,000 Palestinians, according to The National. The southern region of Gaza, already bursting at the seams, faces the prospect of further displacement and misery.
For many Palestinians in al-Mughayyir and beyond, the destruction of olive trees is more than an economic blow; it is a symbol of a deeper struggle for land, identity, and survival. As bulldozers continue to reshape the landscape, the question remains: what kind of future is being built in their wake?
