Farmers from Bekaa cut off the main road of El-Marj on Friday, protesting against “the government’s negligence of the agriculture sector”.
They burned tires and demanded compensation for the losses they sustained after their crops were destroyed.
Speaking on behalf of the protestors, Alaa Al-Chamali affirmed that the government must provide irrigation sources and support the famer rather than standing against him.
“70% of Bekaa’s community works in agriculture and the government takes full responsibility for it,” he added.
He expressed support for the plan to destroy the crops as long as they were irrigated with polluted water, stressing the need that the government assumes responsibility towards the farmers and pay them compensation until a solution is found.
Al-Chmali urged the government to start cleaning the Litani River and building refineries.
He called upon the leaders to fix the source of Litani River’s pollution, stressing the need to stop supplementing it from Gzayel River, which is the main reason behind the pollution.