“You Are Not Alone” Campaign

For 9 years, the “You Are Not Alone Campaign” has been one of Land Defense Coalition
Palestine core campaigns to support the steadfastness of Palestinian farmers in ‘Area C’. In
September 2022 we started the latest campaign, organizing collective olive harvesting with
the farmers during the harvest season. We continued with tree planting initiatives until end
of March 2023.

The “You Are Not Alone Campaign” focuses on not leaving farmers, who are
resisting the theft of their lands and settler attacks on a daily basis, on their own in
this battle. Apartheid Israel has created multiple obstacles for the farmers to stop
them from reaching their lands, in an attempt to alienate Palestinians from their
lands to make it easier for Israel to confiscate them. Hence, volunteers from across
the West Bank, come together to help them reach their lands and cultivate them.
In October, we supported farmers in harvesting their olive trees in the villages of
Deir Al-Ghusoun, Kaffa, Shwaikeh, and Baqa Ash-Sharqiya in the Tulkarm district.
Ar-Ras, Deir Istiya, and Eskaka in Salfit district. Sinjel and Deir Jrir in Ramallah
district; and Burin in the Nablus district. Our efforts supported them in facing Israeli
intimidation and attacks, especially during the harvest season. Apartheid Israel
specifically attempts to break farmers’ steadfastness during the olive harvesting
season, which traces back to the symbolism of olives and olive trees in the
Palestinian struggle. As olive trees symbolize the Palestinian roots in their land.
Hence, Israel’s uprooting of olive trees is also an attempt to uproot the indigenous
Palestinian identity.

Moreover, towards the end of 2022 until the 47th Palestinian Land Day, Land
Defense Coalition Palestine organized efforts by youth volunteers to help farmers
reaching their lands, cultivating them, and planting trees in the villages of Sinjel,
Dayr Jarir, Turmus Aya, and Al-Mughayyir (Ramallah district), Burqa, Burin and Asira
Al-Qibliya (Nablus district), Izbit Shufa, Baqa Ash-Sharqiya (Tulkarm district), Susya
(Masafer Yatta), Farkha (Salfit), Nahaleen, and Ghosh Abdeh (Bethlehem). This year,
during the “You Are Not Alone Campaign” we planted 2000 olive trees and 3000
grape vines. The planting of trees as part of the Palestinian struggle is of specific
importance; it is practiced by Palestinians as an opposition to the systematic
uprooting of trees by Israel, aiming to keep Palestinians away from their land for

easier annexation. Thus, we choose to support the farmers in planting trees,
especially in Area C.

You can have a look at our photo gallery of the campaign here.

We conclude this year’s campaign while Palestinians are still being subjected to
multiple crimes, including the annexation of land for the purpose of settlement
expansion. Hence, people should not be alone in this fight. As Israel systematically
individualizes the struggle by threatening people’s private properties, controlling
the economic status of Palestinians, and creating different fragments in the
Palestinian community, resisting settler colonialism and apartheid is a collective
effort.

To watch the full video please click here.