Lebanese prime minister accuses Israel of intentional environmental destruction

Israel continues “to violate international law by attacking civilians and infrastructure in southern Lebanon,” caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati said on Wednesday. (AFP/File)

• ‘We are still victims of the ongoing Israeli aggression, which is causing significant damage to the environment and agriculture,’ said Najib Mikati
• There was a noticeable decline in military clashes in border regions between Hezbollah and the Israeli army on Wednesday

BEIRUT: Israel continues “to violate international law by attacking civilians and infrastructure in southern Lebanon,” caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati said on Wednesday.
“We are still victims of the ongoing Israeli aggression, which is causing significant damage to the environment and agriculture,” he added
Speaking during a celebration in Beirut for International Francophonie Day, Mikati said: “In light of the turmoil resulting from regional and global destabilization, peace has become more at risk than ever before.
“Lebanon has no choice but to follow the path of constructive dialogue, mutual respect and tolerance, which represents harmony despite differences.”
Abbas Al-Hajj Hassan, Lebanon’s minister of agriculture, said the extent of the damage caused by Israeli attacks on border towns, in some cases 10 kilometers inside Lebanese territory, is being assessed.
“The losses are significant, as the bombing has affected 55 towns and led to the burning of vast areas of forests and the elimination of thousands of dunams of agricultural land that include various crops, besides the loss of many animals and birds, and the complete ruin of food-storage buildings.”
A thousand dunams of land is an area equivalent to 1 square kilometer. About 70 percent of people living in the southern region of Lebanon rely on farming for income. Some depend entirely on raising cows, sheep and bees for their livelihoods.
According to Ministry of Agriculture data, as of mid-March Israeli attacks in Lebanon involving white phosphorus weapons had caused 683 small and large fires that destroyed 2,100 dunams of land. In addition, about 6,000 dunams of forest and agricultural land were damaged, including areas containing olive trees, some of them up to 300 years old, pine trees and oak trees.
White phosphorous, which reacts rapidly with oxygen and burns at a high temperature, is not banned under international law but weapons that use it are tightly regulated and not supposed to be used in civilian areas.
Hassan said: “The percentage of damage in forest areas containing oak and bay laurel trees reached 55 percent, agricultural and citrus trees suffered 35 percent, and herbs 10 percent, while 340,000 birds and 970 head of cattle perished, 91 agricultural tents were damaged, along with 310 bee hives, and a 600-square-meter area of a fodder warehouse was completely destroyed, in addition to attacks on eight farms.”
Israeli forces are carrying out attacks daily on targets in “the plains of Wazzani, Khiam and Marjayoun, extending from Naqoura to the Shebaa Farms, in addition to intimidating farmers and herders and preventing them from working on their lands,” he added.
A national committee has been established to carry out a comprehensive survey of the damage to land once the hostilities cease, officials said. Researchers will take samples from areas subjected to concentrated shelling and test the soil, flowing water and artesian wells to determine the extent of any contamination.
On Wednesday, there was a noticeable decline in military clashes between Hezbollah and the Israeli army, with skirmishes limited to disputed areas in the Shebaa Farms area. Israeli troops in the occupied village of GHajjar reportedly fired bursts of machine gun fire toward cattle herders east of the town of Wazzani.
Israeli army spokesperson Daniel Hagari said: “Hezbollah is dragging Lebanon into a dangerous escalation but there is still a diplomatic window open. Hezbollah rejected our call for peace on the borders.”