Palestinian farmers ordered to leave lands

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Israeli authorities have given Palestinian farmers living in Jericho, in the occupied West Bank, an order to uproot palm trees they have grown and leave agricultural lands within 45 days.

The orders came in the form of letters sent to the farmers in an area known as “Area C” and gave the farmers an October 7 deadline to vacate their lands.

Shawkat Housheyeh, a farmer who received an official warning letter to uproot his palm trees told Reuters news agency that the measure threatened the livelihood of thousands of farm workers in the Jericho area.

In a written statement to Reuters, COGAT - a unit within the Israeli defence ministry which administers the West Bank - said palm trees in the Jericho area had been planted illegally because they were grown on land the ownership of which was still to be established.

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