Gaza Herald – Palestinian farmers in Gaza have risked Israeli gunfire to return to their devastated lands, even as expanding Israeli-designated buffer zones have swallowed vast swaths of agricultural territory.
Since the October ceasefire, Palestinian families attempted to rebuild flattened greenhouses and replant crops. Still, Israeli tanks stationed near the so-called “yellow line” continued to open fire, keeping farmers under constant threat.
In Gaza City’s Zeitoun neighborhood, farmer Mohammed al-Slakhy resumed cultivating a fraction of his land after more than two years of genocide left over three hectares of greenhouses levelled and irrigation networks, wells, solar systems, and desalination units destroyed.
According to the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), more than 80% of Gaza’s cropland was damaged by mid-2025, with less than 5% remaining viable for cultivation. Al-Slakhy could access only one hectare of his family’s 22 hectares, as the remainder fell inside the Israeli-controlled buffer zone.
According to the Government Media Office in Gaza, Israeli forces control approximately 58% of Gaza under the buffer zone designation, much of it prime agricultural land. Farmers working within a few hundred meters of Israeli positions described routine gunfire and tank movements.
In central Gaza, 75-year-old farmer Eid al-Taaban faced similar dangers in Deir el-Balah, where expanding buffer lines prevented harvest of newly planted crops. Heavy machine gun fire echoed daily near his land, located roughly 300 meters from Israeli-controlled territory.
The continued militarization of agricultural zones, combined with restricted access and recurring fire incidents, has further crippled Gaza’s food production capacity. Palestinian farmers attempting to restore cultivation have done so under direct threat, as land loss and Israeli enforcement measures compound the destruction already inflicted on the Gaza Strip’s agricultural infrastructure.
