Prominent Israeli Rabbi Dov Lior has reportedly issued a religious ruling authorizing settlers to take olives from Palestinian orchards in the occupied West Bank. The decree coincides with a tense harvest period marked by increasing friction and clashes across the region. According to Lior’s purported ruling, Palestinian landowners have allegedly been compensated over the years, and Jews are supposedly permitted to harvest the fruit to assert ownership. The cleric even went as far as framing the appropriation of crops as an additional virtue, urging followers to expand their presence in the area.

The controversial decree arrives amid a surge of violence against Palestinian farmers. Numerous individuals have reportedly sustained injuries during incidents involving the Israeli regime's military and settlers, while international journalists and local residents have faced growing security threats that prevent them from accessing their lands.

However, the ruling has not met with universal approval within religious communities. Several orthodox rabbinical organizations and councils openly condemned the calls, labeling unauthorized crop harvesting as theft and moral failure, while emphasizing that property confiscation remains solely within state authority.

Source: www.aljazeera.com