Table of Contents
The ongoing conflict between Israel and Lebanon has severely damaged the country’s wheat production and threatened the livelihoods of local farmers, according to experts who spoke with Al Jazeera. Over the past three years, military operations have resulted in the occupation of southern territories and the widespread destruction of infrastructure, which some analysts describe as an attempt to render the land uninhabitable.
Impact on Farmland and Ecosystems
Repeated military strikes have caused significant disruption to wheat cultivation, particularly in southern Lebanon and the eastern Bekaa Valley. Data indicates that the amount of land left fallow due to the conflict has risen to approximately 24 percent. Munira Khayyat, author of A Landscape of War: Ecologies of Resistance and Survival in South Lebanon, told Al Jazeera that these actions are “disrupting entire ecosystems.” She added that the military activity is “advancing the possibilities of drought and desertification, basically weakening the capacity of this land to hold life.”
Since 2023, reports from analysts and residents suggest that the use of substances such as white phosphorus has been aimed at making the soil sterile. Despite a 2024 ceasefire brokered by France and the United States, attacks have persisted. Following an escalation in March, Israeli forces re-entered southern Lebanon, moving up to 10 kilometers inside the border. Although a June framework agreement intended to establish “pilot zones” for the withdrawal of Israeli troops and the deployment of the Lebanese Armed Forces, destruction of homes and agricultural land has continued.
Wheat Production Losses
Research conducted by Mariam Ibrahim, a researcher with Lebanon’s National Council for Scientific Research (CNRS-L), highlights the severity of the agricultural decline. In her paper, “Wheat in Crisis,” Ibrahim noted that southern wheat-growing areas saw average losses of 47 percent in the 2023-2024 season and 61 percent in 2024-2025. The Bekaa plain, which typically produces about 64 percent of the nation’s wheat, experienced losses of 43 percent and 57 percent during the same periods.
The destruction is particularly acute in specific districts. According to the study, 100 percent of cropland in the border town of Bint Jbeil has been destroyed, while the Baalbeck district in the east has seen approximately 32 percent of its cropland ruined.
Economic Consequences for Farmers
Prior to the recent destruction, Lebanon had seen a surge in domestic wheat cultivation. Ibrahim explained that the war in Ukraine drove up global bread prices, and the depreciation of the Lebanese pound created an incentive for local farmers to expand production, leading to a peak in cultivation during the 2022-2023 season.
However, the current conflict has reversed these gains. Elias Ghadban, a food security expert at the Beirut-based consultancy AgriDev, told Al Jazeera that while the national impact on wheat supply may be limited, the effect on individual farmers in the south has been catastrophic. “They lost their livelihoods,” Ghadban stated. He noted that these losses are compounded by a rising cost of living that has outpaced stagnant wages.
Experts warn that the damage to the agricultural sector may have long-term consequences, potentially preventing farmers from returning to their land even after hostilities cease. Khayyat emphasized that the destruction threatens the connection between small-scale farmers and their ancestral lands, noting that the viability of their lives on that land is “going to be broken.”
