U.S. congressional candidate detained by Israeli forces in West Bank
Brad Lander released while other olive-harvest volunteers remained in custody
Israeli forces detained U.S. congressional candidate Brad Lander and dozens of other volunteers on October 21 while they were helping Palestinian farmers harvest olives in the occupied West Bank. Lander was later released, while other volunteers remained in custody after the incident.
Lander, the Democratic nominee for New York's 10th Congressional District, was among a large group assisting farmers near Nahalin, southwest of Bethlehem. The Israeli organization Rabbis for Human Rights said roughly 80 volunteers were detained. Participants included Americans as well as Israeli, Palestinian, British and Canadian volunteers. Lander is a former New York City comptroller and former mayoral candidate.
Israeli authorities said the group was in an area that had been declared a closed military zone and had not obtained the required approval to enter the farmland. Israel's Foreign Ministry accused Lander of deliberately entering a restricted area after being told coordination would be required. Lander and organizers disputed that characterization. Rabbis for Human Rights said the volunteers did not know the area had been closed and offered to leave after being informed of the order.
Lander said after his release that he received a warning and called for the remaining detainees to be freed. Other international volunteers were expected to undergo additional processing by Israeli authorities. The exact number of Americans among those detained was not immediately clear, so reports that dozens of Americans specifically were detained could not be independently established.
The incident comes during a particularly tense 2026 olive harvest in the West Bank. Palestinian farmers and volunteers have faced increased restrictions and a surge in violence. Days before Lander's detention, Israeli settlers attacked Palestinian villages and olive harvesters, including American photojournalist Heidi Levine and a group of European diplomats. Israeli police later arrested 10 suspects in connection with that violence.
The olive harvest is economically important to Palestinian communities and has increasingly become a flashpoint involving farmers, settlers, activists and Israeli security forces.