Tamara Elzein warns: The South has lost 7,000 hectares of its green wealth, and the framework agreement restricts Lebanon’s right to pursue legal action

Environment Minister Tamara Elzein revealed serious environmental and legal repercussions left by the Israeli escalation against Lebanon, stressing that the framework agreement includes a clause halting complaints related to Israeli crimes, which in her view constitutes a waiver of part of Lebanon’s moral right and limits the ability of international bodies to use the environmental track as a tool for accountability and deterrence.

Elzein said in an interview with Sputnik Radio that the attacks had extensively targeted the South’s forest and environmental wealth, explaining that more than 5,000 hectares of forests and wooded land burned during 2023 and 2024, in addition to around 2,000 more hectares during the first month of 2026, bringing the scale of environmental damage to unprecedented levels.

She noted that Lebanon is facing what she described as an “ecocide” as a result of the direct and indirect damage of the war, considering that its repercussions have gone beyond the environmental file to affect natural ecosystems, forests, and nature reserves, at a time when the country needs a comprehensive national rehabilitation plan.

Elzein stressed that the implementation of any plan remains tied to the availability of security stability, given the difficulty of accessing many of the affected areas, in addition to the need for international funding, noting that the value of environmental damage is estimated at more than $512 million.

On the reform front, Elzein announced that work is continuing on restructuring the Environment Ministry and updating its mechanisms through the creation of a climate directorate, strengthening environmental oversight, and launching reforms covering solid waste, quarries and crushers, in addition to establishing the National Waste Management Authority and setting a long-term strategy for the sector.

She also affirmed that Lebanon does not possess, according to the available scientific data, indicators that place it within precise classifications of the world’s most polluted countries, despite suffering from multiple environmental crises linked to sewage, power outages, transport, and the random burning of waste, calling for the establishment of a national air quality monitoring network and stronger environmental oversight.

On the issue of nature reserves, the environment minister said that Lebanon currently protects around 22% of its land and marine area, as part of its international commitment to reach 30% protection by 2030, stressing the need to support reserves and secure the funding necessary to rehabilitate those that have been damaged.

Elzein concluded by stressing that the priority is not digital transformation alone, but rebuilding public administration on modern foundations and strengthening citizens’ trust in institutions through ministerial performance based on competence and transparency.