Palestinians claim settlers uprooted West Bank olive trees at start of harvest



QARYUT, PALESTINIAN TERRITORIES // More than 70 Palestinian olive trees were uprooted overnight near the northern West Bank city of Nablus in an attack blamed on Jewish settlers, local officials and an AFP journalist said.

Residents of Qaryut village 15 kilometres south of Nablus blamed the attack on settlers from the neighbouring settlement of Eli.

"More than 70 old olive trees were cut down by settlers on land near the Eli settlement," said Abdel Nasser Qaryuti, the head of the village council.

No one witnessed the attack, but he said the villagers had been the target of similar attacks from settlers in the past.

The Israeli army could not immediately confirm the incident which took place on the first day of the olive harvest, a time when Jewish settlers tend to increase attacks on Palestinian farmers and their crops.

Figures released last year by the international aid group Oxfam show there are approximately 9.5 million olive trees in the West Bank, where olive farming is a vital source of revenue for Palestinian farmers.

In a good year, the olive harvest contributes around US$100 million (Dh367m) in income to some of the poorest Palestinian communities.

Real estate tokenisation project

Dubai launched the pilot phase of its real estate tokenisation project last month.

The initiative focuses on converting real estate assets into digital tokens recorded on blockchain technology and helps in streamlining the process of buying, selling and investing, the Dubai Land Department said.

Dubai’s real estate tokenisation market is projected to reach Dh60 billion ($16.33 billion) by 2033, representing 7 per cent of the emirate’s total property transactions, according to the DLD.

2025 Fifa Club World Cup groups

Group A: Palmeiras, Porto, Al Ahly, Inter Miami.

Group B: Paris Saint-Germain, Atletico Madrid, Botafogo, Seattle.

Group C: Bayern Munich, Auckland City, Boca Juniors, Benfica.

Group D: Flamengo, ES Tunis, Chelsea, (Leon banned).

Group E: River Plate, Urawa, Monterrey, Inter Milan.

Group F: Fluminense, Borussia Dortmund, Ulsan, Mamelodi Sundowns.

Group G: Manchester City, Wydad, Al Ain, Juventus.

Group H: Real Madrid, Al Hilal, Pachuca, Salzburg.

RESULTS

6.30pm Handicap (TB) $68,000 (Dirt) 1,200m

Winner Canvassed, Par Dobbs (jockey), Doug Watson (trainer)

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Tuesday's fixtures
Group A
Kyrgyzstan v Qatar, 5.45pm
Iran v Uzbekistan, 8pm
N Korea v UAE, 10.15pm
A little about CVRL

Founded in 1985 by Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid, Vice President and Ruler of Dubai, the Central Veterinary Research Laboratory (CVRL) is a government diagnostic centre that provides testing and research facilities to the UAE and neighbouring countries.

One of its main goals is to provide permanent treatment solutions for veterinary related diseases. 

The taxidermy centre was established 12 years ago and is headed by Dr Ulrich Wernery.