On July 31, 2025, Israeli military forces used heavy machinery to destroy the Seed Multiplication Unit of the Union of Agricultural Work Committees (UAWC) Seed Bank in Hebron, in the southern West Bank. This despicable act destroyed warehouses, equipment, planting materials, and everything necessary to preserve native seeds, dealing a severe blow to Palestinian food sovereignty.

This attack not only destroyed infrastructure, but also profoundly damaged the agricultural and cultural heritage of Palestinian farmers. The traditional seeds, stored and replicated by UAWC for decades, are an essential part of the identity and resilience of the peasantry.

Voices from organizations around the world—including that of AbL Germany, CNA Portugal, Confédération Paysanne France, and CLOC (Latin America)— condemned this aggression and reaffirmed an international commitment to defend food sovereignty in the face of war.

The organizations called the attack as an unacceptable act that violates human rights, peasant rights, and international law. They emphasize that hunger cannot and must not be used as a weapon of war against the Palestinian people and that destroying the basis of their food sovereignty constitutes a form of aggression that must be stopped and punished by the international community.

Some reactions and expressions of support

AbL e.V. (Germany)

Claudia Gerster, federal president of AbL, stated: “With the destruction of the UAWC Seed Bank in Hebron, Palestine’s food sovereignty has been massively attacked… International law, human rights and the rights of peasants around the world are politically inviolable.”

CNA (National Farmers’ Confederation, Portugal)

In its statement of August 4, 2025, the CNA strongly condemned the attack and stated: “The destruction of a national seed bank is an act of cultural erasure… we extend our solidarity (…) and demand immediate international intervention.”

Confédération Paysanne (France)

In a statement also issued on August 4, they expressed their outrage: “We condemn in the strongest terms the military attack (…) which constitutes a direct attack on food sovereignty, biodiversity, and the right of a people to cultivate their future.”

CLOC-Vía Campesina (Latin America and the Caribbean)

On August 1, 2025, this coordinating body expressed its solidarity with UAWC and the Palestinian people: “These attacks represent a serious violation of human and peasant rights… we denounce these acts that use food as a weapon of war as part of the strategy of genocide against the Palestinian people.”