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Israel destroys Palestinian seed bank facilities in West Bank [1]
['The New Arab Staff']
Date: 2025-08
Israeli bulldozers demolished facilities belonging to the Palestinian seed bank in the occupied West Bank earlier this week, officials revealed Saturday.
The facilities and propagules (used to give rise to new plants) were torn down on Thursday by Israeli authorities in the Hebron governorate, located in the southern West Bank.
Fouad Abu Saif, Director General of the Union of Agricultural Work Committees, which is responsible for the seed bank, said that they were used as storage facilities for materials and equipment for the propagation unit, an essential part of the seed bank's work in preserving and propagating local seeds.
In comments made to Anadolu Agency, Abu Saif said the incident constituted a direct targeting of the Palestinian people’s attempts to regain their food sovereignty.
He explained that "the seed bank is one of the most important Palestinian initiatives to preserve and protect genetic resources, specifically local seeds, as a cultural heritage. It enhances Palestinians' ability to secure their own food and asserts sovereignty over local seeds, leading to food sovereignty."
Abu Saif noted that "the Hebron seed bank is the only one in the West Bank and contains more than 70 varieties of indigenous local seeds, a large portion of which are no longer found anywhere else in the West Bank."
He said the Union of Agricultural Work Committees had established the seed bank in 2010 and has since expanded and reached many Palestinian farmers.
There has been a surge in Israeli military and settler violence across the West Bank since the start of Israel's war on Gaza in October 2023, which has seen killings and demolitions of people's homes.
Last month, Israel’s parliament passed a symbolic resolution in favour of annexing the West Bank, which, along with East Jerusalem, has remained under Israeli occupation since the 1967 war.
Hardline Israeli officials continue to call for full annexation and expansion of settlements, in clear violation of international law.
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[1] Url:
https://www.newarab.com/news/israel-destroys-palestinian-seed-bank-facilities-west-bank
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