Reference :
V-P-IL-E-03268
Date :
24/07/2019
Caption :
Be'eri Kibbutz. A farmer, who suffers from the damages of incendiary balloons launched from Gaza.
Confidentiality level :
public
Publication restrictions :
publication without restrictions
Description :
Hot summer days are especially tense for farmers living in the Israeli towns around the Gaza Strip. The cause of their troubles: incendiary balloons. These devices, launched from Gaza, have been drifting over the border since the situation escalated almost two years ago. These incendiary balloons often land on farmer's fields, which catch fire quickly in this dry region. The fires leave huge patches of blackened crops that scar the landscape - and cause enormous financial and psychological damage for the farmers. Sometimes devices land in Israeli towns, endangering property and safety of civilians who live there. Farmers face a tough dilemma: do they harvest their crops early and use them as food for farm animals or wait until they are ready to harvest, risking them being set alight by the balloons?
This farmer tells the ICRC: "Since the eve of 'Shavuot' (the feast of weeks) last year, we have had many fires, sometimes several a day. The fires almost reached our houses. You see the fields burn down and it makes you upset. The crops should be harvested, not burned. The landscape should turn from green to yellow, not black. Nature is stronger than any fire. Eventually, rain comes and cleans everything up. But the heart cannot be repaired and in the end, those are the real scars we are left to deal with".
Resolution :
5472x3648
Orientation :
landscape
Colour/B&W :
colour
