We were interviewing a Palestinian farmer. Then the drone and soldiers appeared

PO1 William "Chip" Nagel
..."While the world has focused on Israel's response in Gaza, violence in the West Bank is also spiking. Attacks on Palestinians by the Israeli military and settlers are up, according to the UNOCHA, which estimates more than 170 Palestinians have been killed and more than 2,600 injured in the West Bank since the war began.

The IDF says it is conducting raids on militants. Abuhejleh says that when he tries to get to his olive trees, the war is the reason Israeli soldiers point to for stopping him. He is convinced they are using the war as an excuse to seize Palestinian land.

Abuhejleh planted his trees in 2011, and this was the first year he was going to be able to harvest them. When he went to check on his trees Oct. 13, he found the dirt road he normally takes to his fields undrivable. He tells us that settlers rolled in with diggers, tore up the dirt road to his fields and severed the water lines he'd installed – an accusation that NPR was unable to confirm. He has not set foot on his land since.

"I am raising these olive trees like my children. So it's not the issue of income," he says, explaining that he has another full-time job with a non-government organization. "It's our land, you know? The connection of the trees, the soil, the stones – this is the important [thing]."...