95% of Gaza's farmland no longer usable as Israeli aggression wipes out food production: FAO

Rome: The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) announced on Tuesday that the ongoing Israeli aggression on Gaza Strip led to...

Rome: The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) announced on Tuesday that the ongoing Israeli aggression on Gaza Strip led to the near-total destruction of the agricultural sector, with 95.4% of Gaza’s land no longer suitable for cultivation.

FAO Assistant Director-General and Regional Representative for the Near East and North Africa, Abdulhakim Elwaer, said in a statement that FAO is currently unable to bring anything into Gaza- not even seeds or bags of fertilizer. He emphasized that the organization is ready to act immediately once humanitarian access becomes available.

Elwaer noted that FAO is currently exploring alternative mechanisms to support farmers, stressing that this is essential to bolstering food security in Gaza amid a rapidly deteriorating humanitarian situation.

According to an assessment conducted by FAO in March, only 4.6% of Gaza's land remains usable for agriculture due to the extensive destruction inflicted on the agricultural infrastructure by Israeli occupation attacks.

The statement added that the remaining farmers are trying to make use of any available space, including areas between tents and atop the rubble of destroyed homes, to grow essential crops.