Israeli settlers have felled more than 1,000 olive and almond trees that have been cultivated for generations by Palestinians, say villagers in this verdant hamlet.
The destruction of trees in Awarta highlights the challenges faced by the roughly 80,000 Palestinian families living under Israeli occupation who depend on the olive industry for their livelihood.
"They've destroyed 150 of my olive trees and 300 of my almond trees," said Fouzan Awwad, 53, a father of six and a member of one of the 23 families who have farmed this area in the West Bank hills east of Nablus. Some of the olive trees were more than a century old. "This is my income, and now it's gone." .... http://www.thenational.ae
