Minister of Environment: Over 16,000 hectares of land have burned since October 2023, and 2,000 hectares have been sprayed with glyphosate

Lebanese Environment Minister Dr. Tamarah Zein raised her voice against the “renewed use of phosphorus shells by the Israeli occupation army in southern Lebanon,” viewing it as a “continuation of the trajectory of environmental genocide being inflicted on the south.”

In a statement, Zein said, “The phosphorus bombardment adds to the extensive fires that have ravaged agricultural lands, orchards, and forests, as well as to the bulldozing and uprooting operations that have destroyed areas of vegetation cover and altered soil characteristics, in addition to the enemy’s spraying of vast areas with the herbicide glyphosate. We are facing multiple and interconnected patterns of Israeli aggression against the environment and natural resources in southern Lebanon.”

Zein noted that “more than 16,000 hectares of agricultural lands, orchards, and forests in Lebanon have been burned since October 2023 through August 2026 as a result of Israeli attacks, while more than 2,000 hectares have been exposed to glyphosate.” She added, “These figures do not reflect the full extent of the environmental damage, which also includes bulldozing, uprooting, destruction of vegetation cover, and impacts on soil, natural habitats, and the agricultural sector.”