Impact of the Israeli military activities on the environment

ABSTRACT

Many conflicts in Western Asia over the past 75 years left devastation and refugees and the last war on the Gaza Strip is a good example. Our interests as environmentalists are the effects of conflict (including active conflict, pre-conflict activities, and post-conflict impact). Here, we review the impacts on the Palestinian environment of activities since 1948 (establishment of the state of Israel): pre-conflict (such as training sites, military bases, military installation), during conflicts (use of different munitions, pollution, altering habitats), and post-conflicts (unexploded munitions, ground water pollution, devastated landscape). The data show significant environmental damage that operates short-term and long-term. More more studies are needed and encouraged, but the data do suggest that environment and human health impacts need to be highlighted in public discourse and remedial actions must be taken in protracted conflict situations like the Palestine/Israel conflict.

KEYWORDS:

• Gaza Strip
• Palestine
• conflict resolution
• sustainability
• war

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).