A map documenting Israeli attacks on South Lebanon. (Lebanon's National Early Warning System platform)
BEIRUT — Israeli fire burned 17 million square meters of land between Oct. 7 and June 20, according to the latest data by Lebanon's National Early Warning System platform (NEWSP), updated by the National Council for Scientific Research (NCSR). Compared to figures shared by the NEWSP earlier this year, the size of burned land due to Israeli attacks more than doubled between Jan. 1 and June 20. The platform also recorded Israel hitting south Lebanon with 175 phosphorus shells and 196 incendiary flare bombs.
The data were shared in a meeting on Friday, during which Lebanese authorities highlighted their assessment on damages caused by Israeli attacks on Lebanon with different ambassadors in Lebanon.
During the meeting, Tamara el-Zein, the NCSR's secretary-general, "insisted on the deliberate targeting of Lebanese environment by Israeli attacks and on the need of continuous monitoring on which should be based the recovery plans," Zein said in a Facebook post.
Since the start of the conflict between Hezbollah and the Israeli army in October, wildfires have been commonplace in south Lebanon. The Israeli army hit Lebanon with 175 incendiary white phosphorus munitions between Oct. 7 and June 20 to set fire to forests and fields in border areas, according to NEWSP. However, the frequency of using incendiary bombs, including flare bombs, almost halved by February but experienced a slight jump in June.
If nothing changes in Israel's policy of using incendiary munitions, "the risk of wildfires and burned areas might be higher this year," George Mitri, advisor to the Environment Minister and director of the Land and Natural Resources Program at the Environment Institute at the University of Balamand previously told L'Orient Today.
The south's geography, which includes vast areas of farmland, natural reserves and forests, complicates firefighting efforts, especially due to the limited access to water coupled with the presence of landmines in the area.
One of the forests burnt down in southern Lebanon following the Israeli bombardments. (Photo from Green Southerners)
White phosphorus munitions, while legally used for smoke screens, illumination, marking targets and burning structures, are classified as incendiary weapons under Protocol III of the Convention on Certain Conventional Weapons, which prohibits their use against military targets in proximity to civilian areas; however, Israel is not a signatory to this protocol.
In October, rights groups Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch accused the Israeli army of firing artillery shells containing white phosphorous in military operations along Lebanon's southern border, saying the use of such weapons puts civilians at risk of serious and long-term injury. An investigation by The Washington Post revealed that the white phosphorus munitions Israel is using are U.S.-supplied.
According to NEWSP, Israeli attacks triggered fires in south Lebanon that burned 17 million square meters of land between Oct. 7 and June 20. Of this area, 1.13 million square meters represent the total area of burned olive trees, 810,000 square meters represent the area of burned bananas and citrus fruits, and 11.5 million square meters represent the total area of burned oak trees.
According to L'Orient Today's count, Israeli attacks since Oct. 8 have killed 75 civilians, three journalists, two members of the Lebanese Armed Forces and 21 medics. In total, Israeli attacks have killed 485 people, including Palestinian factions members and Hezbollah fighters in Lebanon and Syria.