On 14 October 2021, Yusef Hamuda (64) and his brother Ibrahim (50) went to their olive grove, which lies on the southern side of the village, 300 meters from where the settlement of Rehelim was established. When they got there, they encountered three settlers who ordered them to leave and threatened to summon dozens of other settlers. Yusef Hamuda called the Palestinian DCO and meanwhile, noticed many settlers gathering by a shed erected by settlers on private Palestinian land outside Rehelim. The three settlers in the grove tried to steal equipment off the roof of the brothers’ car, but the two managed to get in and drive off.
The next day, at around 10:00 A.M., about 30 settlers, some of them masked and armed with sticks, attacked Jomanah Suliman (44) and workers she had hired to harvest olives in her grove, which lies north of the Hamuda family’s plot. The settlers threw stones at the harvesters, hitting Suliman, and sprayed pepper spray at her. They also stole farming equipment, a mobile phone and personal belongings from the harvesters, and fled towards the shed. On their way, the settlers stoned seven members of the Hamuda family who were working their land at the time. The family fled to their car, which was parked near Route 60, but the settlers chased them, smashed the rear window and then fled.
At that point, police, soldiers and Border Police forces arrived, but none of them tried to chase after the assailants. The police officers collected statements from some of the residents, and the soldiers put about five settlers who were in the fields by the shed into their jeep and drove away. After that, the Israeli forces left the area without ensuring the stolen property be returned to its owners.
The next morning, 16 October 2021, members of the Hamuda family went to their grove to continue harvesting their trees. Fifteen soldiers arrived and ordered them to leave their land because they hadn’t coordinated the harvest – although they had never been required to do so before. The family was forced to leave the area, as settlers stood by the shed and watched them.