In a field overlooking a lush valley in southern Lebanon, residents of the village of Zibqin balanced on branches picking their olives while Lebanese Army soldiers stood nearby, Reuters reports.
Zibqin is adjacent to Israels self-declared security zone in southern Lebanon, where Israeli troops have demolished dozens of villages, saying armed group Hezbollah had embedded itself in civilian infrastructure a claim the group denies. Israeli shelling frequently strikes the valley below the olive groves despite a June ceasefire between the two sides.
As Palestinians, Israeli rights groups and the UN report increased violence and olive thefts by Israeli settlers in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, Lebanese farmers also fear for their safety, illustrating how conflict is again upending the annual harvest.
Despite the danger, Lebanese farmers are returning to fields they have tended for generations, determined to harvest a crop that is one of their main sources of income and nutrition.
