Salfit (QNN)- Colonial Israeli settlers uprooted and vandalized on Friday 20 olive saplings belonging to a Palestinian resident of the town of Qarawet Bani Hasan, northwest of Salfit in the northern occupied West Bank. Local sources reported that the owner, Ahmed Mer’i, said a group of settlers uprooted and vandalized 20 olive saplings from his privately-owned land located to the northeast of the Qarawet Bani Hasan town. The owner and his sons planted the 20 saplings earlier that day before the settlers came and uprooted them, the sources added. Olives are Palestine’s most important crop, as they export their oil around the globe. Thousands of farming families consider the annual harvest as a crucial source of income. However, in Salfit, ‘Israel’ continues to confiscate more lands in order to expand the Ari’el settlement and build dozens of new settlement units. ‘Israel’ also seized more than 5,000 dunums in order to enlarge the Ari’el settlement. There are 18 Palestinian communities in Salfit. However, there are 24 Israeli settlements between residential and industrial areas. Ari’el is one of the largest settlements in the West Bank built on thousands of dunums of Palestinians’ lands. There are nearly 700,000 Israeli settlers living in 256 illegal settlements across the occupied West Bank and Jerusalem. Israeli settlements are illegal under international law.