The Israeli occupation’s aggression against the Palestinian territories caused major and irreparable human losses, in addition to economic losses stemming from the destruction of infrastructure, and the agricultural and livestock sectors in particular were damaged.
Researchers around the world have conducted several studies to investigate the extent to which wars and the use of weapons affect the output of agricultural activities and soil efficiency, which has already confirmed the impact of agriculture in areas of armed conflict as a result of various factors.
The impact of armed attacks extends beyond the borders of the affected territories, affecting the global food production chain, which is what actually happened as a result of the Russian-Ukrainian war, which led to a significant rise in the prices of major food commodities around the world.
Wars destroy crops and soil
In June 2022, the Science News platform published A report It monitors the damage caused to the Ukrainian agricultural sector as a result of the Russian-Ukrainian war, and the report stated that the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations “Faw“I expected that about 20% of the crops planted in the winter would fail to be harvested, and that the wheat harvest rate would fall by about half.
The report referred to a study conducted by researcher Joseph Hobby in order to identify the changes occurring in the soil of some areas of the French city of Verdun, which witnessed the events of World War I, by examining the craters resulting from the bombing. Hobby found pieces of limestone between the deep layers of soil, and noticed a change in the flow pattern. Water in the areas surrounding these pits, resulting in a change in plant growth patterns.
In addition to the above, the report explained the risks associated with tanks passing over agricultural land, causing soil compression, which may cause a decrease in agricultural crop yields by up to 60% due to the difficulty of plant roots reaching nutrients in the soil, and the difficulty of water and agricultural fertilizers penetrating the same soil layers.
Finally, the report stated that chemical pollution that may result from the use of ammunition and chemical weapons, in addition to animal remains, are factors that spoil the soil, and this damage may extend over several decades.
Damage lasting decades
On the other hand, he explained a report Published by The Economist platform, the American bombing of Cambodia about 52 years ago led to continued damage to its agricultural sector until the present time.
The report referred to a study conducted by researcher Erin Lin, which showed that Cambodian farmers may avoid practicing agriculture in areas with dark soil for fear that they contain explosive materials, especially those that have been subjected to heavy bombing.
The study also showed that the farms in the fertile areas that were bombed had become unproductive.
Lin estimated that farmers in the bombed lands used about 12% less of their land than the lands that survived the bombing, which led to a 40% decrease in the return on selling the rice crop.
Huge and prolonged agricultural losses
Director General of Farmers’ Services, Iman Jarrar, confirmed in an interview with Al Jazeera Net that the situation in Gaza is “very dangerous and dark.” She added, “Although it is impossible to accurately estimate the losses, the Central Bureau of Statistics report indicated the complete annihilation of poultry and vegetable farms in the northern Gaza Strip, in addition to the destruction of most fishing boats, and severe damage to underground wells.”
Jarrar expects that large areas of agricultural land will lose their productive capacity in the future as a result of armed attacks and the use of internationally banned weapons such as phosphorous bombs, in addition to the impact of heavy equipment passing over those lands. Naturally, this destruction, coupled with constant attacks, leads to; To force farmers from their lands.
And it was issued a report On November 28, the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics confirmed that the agricultural sector lost about two million US dollars per day due to the cessation of production.
Insecurity and impossibility of living
Al Jazeera Net contacted the head of the Farmers Union, Haj Azzam, to find out the current situation of farmers and those who work in the field of raising animals and birds.
Azzam confirmed that the Zionist entity’s attacks affected all agricultural crops and greatly harmed livestock due to the presence of agricultural lands near the border strip of the Gaza Strip.
He explained that “the livestock barracks were a major target for the occupation aircraft, which led to the death of a large number of animals and birds.”
Regarding the situation of the farmers themselves, Azzam explained that “repeated attacks on agricultural lands over short periods led to huge human losses, as a large number of these farmers were martyred trying to carry out their work, in addition to the economic losses resulting from the siege of the sector, which led to a lack of production and a rise in Prices for all types of products.
Azzam confirmed that the farmers who survived the bombing were leaving their lands either to escape the attacks, or because of forced displacement imposed by the occupation forces.
Famine is an additional danger
In an attempt to communicate with any of the farmers inside the Gaza Strip to find out about the situation, Iman Jarrar confirmed her failure to communicate with any of them.
She commented: “Farmers – and the people of Gaza in general – suffer from the dangers of being killed as a result of ongoing attacks. They also suffer from displacement, and the specter of famine looms around them due to the destruction of lands and the difficulty of aid reaching them. The people of Gaza are currently only thinking about how to survive, so it is impossible to communicate with them.”
Jarrar explained that the photos obtained by Al Jazeera were taken by retired agricultural engineer Nabil Abu Khater, who volunteered to monitor the various losses suffered by agricultural and livestock resources within the sector, prove the losses that farmers were exposed to, and convey the general situation to the Farmers’ Services Department. He was martyred during Perform this task.
