A recent geographical evaluation conducted by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and the United Nations Satellite Center revealed that 95% of agricultural lands in the Gaza Strip are no longer suitable for agriculture due to the destruction left by the destroyed Israeli war on the Strip.
The evaluation stressed that this reality increases the deterioration of the ability to produce food and exacerbate the risk of starvation in the Gaza Strip.
He pointed out that more than 80% of the total area of agricultural land in the Gaza Strip was damaged until April, and it became 77.8% of the lands not available to farmers.
The evaluation added that the Israel war targeting stone and human beings in the Strip left only 688 hectares available for agriculture, which is approximately 4.6%.
The FAO said that the situation is critical, especially in Rafah and the northern governorates, where not all agricultural lands can be reached.
High -resolution satellite images by comparing them to pre -October 7, 2023 data showed that 71.2% of the covered agricultural areas were damaged, as Rafah witnessed the highest affected rate among all regions in Gaza.
The same evaluation recorded that 82.8% of agricultural wells across the Gaza Strip were damaged, and this percentage reached about 67.7% in December 2024.
He pointed out that before the start of the war, agriculture represented about 10% of the Gaza economy, and that more than 560,000 people depend entirely or partially on the production of crops, grazing or fishing in securing their daily livelihood.
Beth Bexdol, Deputy Director General of the FAO, said that the level of destruction that caused agricultural spaces in Gaza “is not limited to the loss of infrastructure, but also includes the collapse of the agricultural food system and life artery.”
“It did not provide food, income and stability for hundreds of thousands, it is now in ruin,” she added.
She added that with the destruction of lands and agricultural “gangs” and wells, “domestic food production is completely stopped,” stressing that reconstruction requires “huge investments and sustainable commitment to restore livelihoods and hope.”
Earlier this year, the “FAO” estimated the total value of the damage and losses incurred by the agricultural sector in Gaza since the war on the Strip began with “more than two billion dollars”, while the needs of recovery and reconstruction were valued at about $ 4.2 billion.