6 February 2026 Human Rights
https://news.un.org/en/story/2026/02/1166907
The UN reiterated concerns on Friday over reports that Israeli forces sprayed a highly toxic herbicide over areas north of the Blue Line separating Lebanon from Israel on 1 February.
The development poses a “serious humanitarian risk” to civilians living there, maintained the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), briefing journalists in Geneva.
“The use of herbicides raises questions about the effects on local agricultural lands and how this might impact the return of civilians to their homes and livelihoods in the long term,” said Alessandra Vellucci, Director of the UN Information Service in Geneva.
Reiterating remarks made by the UN Spokesperson in New York on Thursday, Ms. Vellucci highlighted the obligations of all parties under international humanitarian law. “Any activity by the [Israel Defense Forces] IDF north of the Blue Line is a violation of resolution 1701,” she told journalists.
OHCHR spokesperson Thameen Al-Kheetan insisted that the reports required deeper investigation “to confirm the nature of the chemical substances” that had been used. “Attacks on farmland and water sources poses a serious…humanitarian risk,” he said.
Reports attributed to the Lebanese authorities indicate that the herbicide is glyphosate, and that samples taken from the sprayed areas where there is dense vegetation showed concentrations at 20 to 30 times the recommended level.
By Laure Stephan (Beirut (Lebanon) correspondent)
Published on February 9, 2026, at 4:39 pm (Paris)
According to Beirut, the Israeli military dropped highly concentrated glyphosate near the demarcation line between Lebanon and Israel. The spraying of this herbicide, which threatens soil fertility, could prevent people from returning to the area.
An Israeli aircraft disperses a toxic substance over the village of Al-Bustan, near the border, as seen in a screenshot from a video posted by the Lebanese environmental NGO Green Southerners on February 1, 2026. INSTAGRAM SCREENSHOT @GREENSOUTHERNERS
