Syrian fighters burning crops, using food as ‘weapon of war’: UN | World News, The Indian Express

Syrian fighters burning crops, using food as ‘weapon of war’: UN | World News, The Indian Express

By Reuters |Geneva |Published: June 4, 2019 5:51:07 pm

Syrian fighters burning crops, using food as ‘weapon of war’: UN

"The latest outbreak in violence in Idlib and north Hama has left dozens of casualties, burned several thousand acres of vital crops and farmland and forced at least 300,000 people to flee their homes," WFP spokesman Herve Verhoosel said.

Satellite images released by campaigners last week showed fields, orchards and olive groves burning in the region where Syria’s Russia-backed army has been assaulting rebels in their last major stronghold. (AP)

Fighters have set fire to thousands of acres of wheat and other crops in northwest Syria in a campaign that has turned food supplies in a “weapon of war” and forced hundreds of thousands of civilians to flee, the United Nations said on Tuesday.