'Israel' destroyed huge Gaza areas for crops; 90% of cattle killed: UN
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Before the outset of the war, farms covered around 40% of Gaza, producing enough vegetables, eggs, fresh milk, poultry, and fish to supply roughly one-third of local demand.
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The aftermath of an Israeli attack on the al-Maghazi refugee camp, left farmland devastated (Anadolu Agency)
More than 90% of livestock in Gaza have perished, and around 70% of cropland has been destroyed or damaged since the start of the Israeli war on Gaza, according to a UN study of satellite images.
Over half of the sheep and goat herds have been killed and more than three-quarters of the territory's famed orchards have been destroyed or damaged, according to a September study.
Last week, Rein Paulsen, head of the UN Food and Agriculture Organization's Office of Emergencies and Resilience, stated that local food production in Gaza has been "decimated", telling the UNSC that vehicle tracks, razing, and shelling have caused significant damage to farmland, infrastructure, wells, and other productive infrastructure, increasing the risk of famine.
Before the outset of the war last year, farms covered around 40% of Gaza, producing enough vegetables, eggs, fresh milk, poultry, and fish to supply roughly one-third of local demand. Many families owned their own olive or fruit trees.
Faraj Jarudat, who was forced to evacuate his farm in northern Gaza, said his three cows and 60 sheep had perished, either due to Israeli bombing or a shortage of feed.
According to Jarudat, friends and former neighbors who visited the site informed him that his trees and houses once stood were uprooted and destroyed by Israeli soldiers. The region near Beit Lahia, where he lived, has seen intense violence in recent weeks.
"The farm and all of our homes - my home and homes of my children - were bulldozed," he expressed.
Ismael al-Rahal, 49, a farmer from northern Gaza, said only a few of his 65 sheep survived, explaining how he had to move them with him each time he had to flee. He explained to the UN how food prices were extremely high, forcing his family to cut back on their food to feed the sheep.
According to Paulsen, in some areas of Gaza, farmers, fishermen, and livestock owners are risking their lives to continue producing. He told the UN how "the significant levels of damage … are exacerbating the humanitarian and hunger crisis on the ground and increasing the risk of famine. Food supply across [Gaza] has sharply deteriorated while food availability is at an all-time low."
UN warns of catastrophic humanitarian Crisis in Gaza as winter looms
The humanitarian situation in Gaza has reached catastrophic levels, with widespread displacement and destruction, UN Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process Tor Wennesland warned on Monday.
Speaking at a UN Security Council meeting on the Middle East, Wennesland sounded the alarm on the dire conditions in Gaza, particularly in the north, describing the situation as marked by a "disturbing disregard for international humanitarian law."
"As this Council has been briefed repeatedly, the humanitarian situation in Gaza, as winter begins, is catastrophic, particularly developments in the north of Gaza with a large-scale and near-total displacement of the population and widespread destruction and clearing of land, amidst what looks like a disturbing disregard for international humanitarian law," Wennesland said.
“How much more misery can ordinary people on both sides be expected to endure? What greater burden can we place on humanitarians to deliver?”
— UN News (@UN_News_Centre) November 18, 2024
– Tor Wennesland, @UNSCO_MEPP, 18 Nov 24 pic.twitter.com/uN9rytSgG2
Wennesland highlighted the difficulties faced by humanitarian agencies in Gaza, citing a dangerous operational environment and access restrictions that hinder aid efforts. He stressed the need for unrestricted access to deliver aid and emphasized the importance of a political solution to address the root causes of the violence, warning that without it, the humanitarian situation will not improve.
