Lebanon’s lost olive season: harvesting olives under drones and warplanes

What the report says

Lebanon’s olive harvest this year is taking place under unusually dangerous conditions in the country’s south, according to Al Jazeera, as farmers contend with Israeli drone activity, nearby strikes and the risk of unexploded ordnance. The report focuses on growers in villages close to the border with Israel, including Majdel Selm, where farmer Khaled Farhat said access to his grove required clearance through local and military channels because of restrictions tied to the postwar security arrangements.

The article says the occupation and repeated bombardment have damaged farms, uprooted trees and burned land, while also limiting how long farmers are allowed to reach their property. Farhat described having only a short window to harvest, with overgrown weeds and missed maintenance making the work harder. Other farmers and local voices told Al Jazeera that drones and warplanes overhead create constant psychological pressure and that some land remains unsafe because of cluster munitions and other explosive remnants.

The piece also highlights broader concern over casualties in agricultural areas. Al Jazeera reports that at least two people were killed in olive groves in southern Lebanon in early October, and that past and current hostilities have left a persistent contamination problem. Mines Advisory Group staff told the outlet that explosive hazards continue to complicate clearance efforts, especially where vegetation or soil can hide devices.

More broadly, the report places the harvest in the context of Lebanon’s economic strain and the south’s wartime disruption. It suggests that despite the dangers, many residents still return to their land out of necessity, even as fears about safety and possible chemical contamination affect farming and trade.