The five women were detained while helping protect Palestinian farmers, amid rising reports of settler violence during this year’s olive harvest.
Five Italian women detained by Israeli forces in the occupied West Bank were released and repatriated on Saturday morning, Italy’s foreign ministry said.
The activists were detained on Thursday by Israeli police in Kiryat Arba, alongside other international activists, while seeking to protect Palestinian farmers during the olive harvest.
Officials from the Italian embassy in Tel Aviv visited the women at the airport on Friday evening and reported that they appeared to be in good physical condition.
The release comes amid growing concerns over violence against Palestinians harvesting olives in the occupied West Bank. Palestinians, activists and the United Nations say settler intimidation has persisted for decades but has intensified sharply this year.
Israeli rights group Yesh Din said it had documented more than 330 incidents of settler violence connected to this year’s olive harvest, which began in late September. The reported incidents include attacks, theft and damage to olive trees.
Israeli security services have said they take acts of violence and criminal activity very seriously.
Olive production is a key part of Palestinian agriculture, which accounts for around 8% of the Palestinian economy and supports more than 60,000 jobs, according to the Palestinian Authority’s agriculture ministry.