Footage from January and February 2026 captures Israeli aircraft spraying herbicides on agricultural land in southern Syria. A team of FRANCE 24 observers spoke to farmers who described the significant losses caused by these spraying operations.
Videos sent to our team show Israeli planes flying low over farmland in Quneitra, southern Syria, in late January and early February. Syrian farmers say the plane is spraying chemicals on their crops.
The planes were spotted over the buffer zone separating Syria from the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights. This zone should be demilitarized. However, since the fall of Bashar al-Assad in late 2024, the Israeli military has established bases there and further inland.
After these spraying operations, farmers say their crops turned yellow within days. Local agricultural officials reported that hundreds of hectares were damaged, including fruit trees.
‘I have lost 7.5 hectares of wheat’
We spoke to one local farmer who asked to remain anonymous.
“On January 27, 2026, Israeli aircraft carried out an extensive herbicide spraying operation. On February 5, 2026, crops began to turn yellow and on February 7, 2026, they began to wither.
Personally, I lost 7.5 hectares of wheat. I bought seeds and took loan and cultivated the land. My creditors are now asking for their money and the crops have been destroyed by the Israeli occupation.
Israeli officials have not responded to our requests for comment.
Similar spraying operations were also reported in southern Lebanon.
Analysts believe this could be a move to stop the vegetation from growing, otherwise it would provide cover for armed groups. Others say it may be an attempt to extend Israeli control over the border areas.
‘What Israel is effectively doing is creating a dead zone’
By analyzing satellite images, NGO PAX has calculated how much land has been damaged in Syria. Wim Zwijnenberg, leader of the disarmament project at PAX, told our team:
“We looked at the damaged vegetation and compared it with the week before the spraying and the week after it was sprayed. We could follow the affected vegetation approximately 55 kilometers from south to north in the Golan Heights.
According to a rough estimate, an area of six to 10 square kilometers was sprayed with herbicides, which is about twice the size of New York’s Central Park.
What Israel is effectively doing is creating a dead zone along the border between Syria and Lebanon for security reasons.
Read the full story on our website:
Read moreHow Israel is spraying Syrian crops with herbicides
(Tags to be translated)Middle East(T)Observer(T)Observer(T)Syria(T)Israel(T)Golan Heights(T)Environment
