Israel's war has wiped out 90 per cent of Gaza's livestock

Cattle, sheep and poultry killed by air strikes or slaughtered in desperation

With agricultural areas destroyed, shepherds in Gaza use garbage dumps to graze their animals in Khan Yunis. Reuters

Two years of Israeli attacks have devastated Gaza's farming sector, with more than 90 per cent of livestock destroyed, an official from the Ministry of Agriculture has said.

An estimated 95 per cent of cattle have been killed, either in air strikes or having been slaughtered in desperation during Israel's months-long blockade of supplies. Only 43 per cent of sheep survived, and 99 per cent of poultry have died.

The damage is not just measured in dollars or in tonnes of lost production, it amounts to the collapse of an economy that sustained tens of thousands of families. Farms that once provided Gaza with red and white meat, milk and eggs are now little more than craters and twisted metal.

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“The war didn’t just kill animals,” the ministry official told The National. “It wiped out an entire way of life.”

Before the war, 15,000 cattle, 55,000 sheep and millions of chickens supplied local markets. But Israel's military tactics imposed famine conditions on Gaza, and the gradual return of aid lorries has failed to fully resolve the crisis.

Entire regions that once led Gaza’s food production, notably Khan Younis in the south and the northern governorates, have become militarised zones controlled by the Israeli army. Even if reconstruction began today, officials say, it could take decades for the livestock industry to recover.

For Tamer Al Kafarna, a 51-year-old livestock trader from northern Gaza, the destruction of his two farms east of Jabalia was not only a financial disaster, but the loss of his purpose in life.

“Before the war, I had two farms that cost me around $350,000 to build,” he told The National. “They held about 5,000 head of cattle and sheep. I spent every day there with my sons and grandkids. It was our life.”

Many Gazans are still short of food due to a lack of aid. AFP

Then, in the war’s first days, Israeli air strikes reduced everything to ashes. “All the animals were killed,” he said, his voice heavy. “My losses are over $700,000. But the bigger loss is that fresh meat no longer exists in Gaza. People are starving. Children are growing weak. The war didn’t just kill our farms, it killed health itself.”

Today, Mr Al Kafarna, like most traders, has no income and no way to rebuild. “The borders are closed, livestock imports are banned, and the army controls all the land east of the Yellow Line,” he said, referring to the ceasefire line that demarcates Israeli-held territory. “We’ve been cut off from our own livelihood.”

In Gaza city, Yahya Al Sawafiri, 43, still struggles to accept that the family business, a poultry empire passed down through generations, is gone.

Before the war, Mr Al Sawafiri, his brothers and his cousins had 22 chicken farms between them, worth a combined $3 million, that supplied the market with 700,000 animals a month. But in a matter of days, everything vanished under bombardment.

“The Israeli army destroyed them all,” he said. “They won’t even allow poultry supplies into Gaza now. How can we rebuild if we can’t get chicks, feed or equipment?”

For Mr Al Sawafiri, the loss is deeply personal. “These farms were more than work. They were our heritage, something our fathers and grandfathers built. We were proud to feed Gaza. Now, the farms are gone, and with them, part of who we are.”

Palestinians walk among piles of rubble and damaged buildings in Gaza city. Reuters

With no fresh meat, no milk and no eggs, Gaza’s population faces a growing nutritional crisis. Children, pregnant women and the elderly are most at risk, as protein scarcity compounds the effects of famine and disease.

“Even if the war ends today, it will take years of international intervention and billions in investment to rebuild the sector,” the Agriculture Ministry official said. “But without open crossings and safety for farmers, recovery is impossible.”

From the wreckage of barns and silos, Gaza’s farmers continue to search for fragments of their former lives, a rusted feeding trough, a broken incubator, a scorched water tank. Each piece is a reminder of a livelihood destroyed, and a community stripped of its sustenance.

“The animals used to feed us,” said Mr Al Kafarna. “Now, we can’t even feed ourselves.”