News Report by Clovis Choueifaty
BEIRUT, 13 Feb (KUNA) -- The Israeli war on the South Lebanon has claimed lives of nearly two hundred people, left a trail of destruction, caused a massive exodus of residents and hardly hit the different sectors of the ailing economy of the Arab country.
The Lebanese National News Agency (NNA) estimated the death toll of the war at nearly 200 so far including three journalists.
The war has also caused the displaced of tens of thousands of people and brought a huge trail of devastation in the attacked areas.
Bilal Qashmar, media coordinator at the Disaster Management Unit of the Tyre Union of Municipalities, told KUNA that over 30,000 have fled their homes in the southern areas to escape from the Israeli unabated bombardment and artillery shelling. About 1,000 of them now live in five shelter centers, he said, adding that the Tyre Union of Municipalities has been working since the beginning of the war to secure shelter supplies and food rations for the displaced people in cooperation with international and local humanitarian agencies. Other statistical institutions put the number of displaced people due to the war to nearly 70,000, noting that the majority of them live in homes they own or rent in the capital, Beirut, and its environs, or with their relatives or in hotels in various Lebanese cities. Qashmar unveiled that the Israeli bombardment has partially or completely destroyed 20 percent of the border villages. He clarified that the displaced people from the southern villages, who depend on agriculture for their livelihood, were unable to harvest their crops due to the Israeli attacks on their land using incendiary and toxic phosphorus bombs and shells. Meanwhile, the Ministry of Agriculture issued a report on the damage in southern Lebanon last January 20, noting the Israeli incendiary phosphorus bombs have sparked 613 fires in 55 southern towns, including 43 in Nabatieh Governorate and 12 in the South Governorate. The ministry indicated that the Israeli war machine has completely burned over 2,000 dunams of agricultural lands in the border towns and partially affected 6,000 dunams others of agricultural and forest lands.
The fire caused by the Israeli bombs have burned more than 50,000 olive trees and tens of thousands of pine, oak and citrus trees, the ministry added.
It also indicated that 350,000 birds and about 1,000 heads of livestock were killed by the Israeli fire, while 90 agricultural tents and 320 bee hives were damaged. The war has also grave impacts on education in the southern region, the Ministry of Education and Higher Education have ordered closure of all private and public schools in the border areas for the safety of the students.
On the economic aspect, Assistant Secretary-General of the Arab Federation of Capital Markets Dr. Fadi Kanso told KUNA that the war in south Lebanon have affected the country's tourism, services and transportation sectors. Kanso explained that many travelers have canceled their trips to Lebanon after some airlines had suspended their flights to Beirut last December. Lebanon recorded about USD one billion decline in tourism revenues during the winter season this year because of the war, he said. Kanso disclosed that 25 percent of the industrial and commercial businesses in the southern region, "even those which are far from confrontations areas," have closed and the remaining operate with a minimum capacity, amid fear of war spillover.
He expected that the displacement movement, high unemployment rates, and internal migration would have huge impacts on the Lebanese economy.
But, if the current confrontations turned into a full-scale war, there would be harsher ramifications on the industrial, agricultural, tourism and infrastructure sectors as well as the financial situation and living conditions in the country, he warned. (end) kbs.ibi