Five Italian activists held in West Bank have been repatriated, ministry says

MILAN, Oct 24 (Reuters) – Five Italian activists who were detained by Israeli forces in the West Bank this week were released and repatriated on Saturday morning, Italy’s foreign ministry said.

The women were detained on Thursday by Israeli police in Kiryat Arba along with other international activists, while seeking to protect Palestinian farmers during the olive harvest in the Israel-occupied territory.

Officials from the Italian embassy in Tel Aviv visited them at the airport on Friday evening and said the activists appeared to be in good physical condition.

Settlers have intimidated Palestinians harvesting their olives in the occupied West Bank for decades, but violence has increased sharply this year, according to Palestinians, activists and the UN.

Israeli rights group Yesh Din said it had recorded more than 330 incidents of settler violence linked to this year’s olive harvest, which started in late September, including attacks, theft and damage to trees.

Israeli security services have said they take acts of violence and criminal activity very seriously.

Olives are the backbone of Palestinian agriculture, a sector that accounts for around 8% of GDP and more than 60,000 jobs, according to the Palestinian Authority’s agriculture ministry.

(Reporting by Cristina Carlevaro; Editing by Andrew Heavens)

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