700,000 of Israel's trees were burned as a result of over 3,000 Katyusha rockets fired from Lebanon during the 31 days of fighting between Israel and Lebanon. 3,000 acres of forest land were scorched in the northern areas of Israel causing massive environmental concerns.

Forests are also important for the defense of the nation of Israel. They create natural defensible borders which pose a problem for Israel's enemies. Tanks and personnel carriers have a much more difficult time navigating through a forest than over open terrain. Also enemies cannot see Israel's troop movement and deployment through the forests thus giving Israel a tactical advantage in placing troops near the border. The most recent war with Lebanon devastated thousands of acres of these planted forests thus weakening Israel's defenses.

The forests that were incinerated were not natural forests. These forests had been planted by Israel's residents and immigrants who saw the importance of forestry in the reclamation of their promised homeland. The planting of trees in Israel has been an ongoing mission for over 50 years. Funded by individuals from around the world, these forests were planted not only to beautify the northern areas of Israel but also to reclaim steep barren mountainsides that were eroding and washing down into the valleys bellow.


During the last month of fighting the JNF fought multiple forest fires each day caused by the Katyusha rockets. When the incoming rocket sirens would sound, most Israeli's would make their way to bomb shelters but not Paul Ginsberg and a host of volunteer and staff firemen. They would know by the sirens that they would soon have additional forest fires to battle and would begin suiting up for action. Some days the JNF would fight 15 fires at once in wartime conditions in order to preserve as much of the forests as they could.

One volunteer firefighter, 64 year old Josi Carmen, is a natural born Israeli who was involved in planting the forest over 50 years ago. He left the safety of his own bomb shelter to stand along side other men who were bravely fighting multiple fires to preserve the forest that he had planted. He sustained first degree burns to one hand and forearm during a heroic battle against one of the hottest fires in the Biriya Forest.

Several of the forest fires were so hot that they would melt the pine needles onto the branches by superheated gusts of wind. The effect on the tree is fatal and unrecoverable, but the needles on the tree appear to have only turned brown. Entire sections of the forest look like autumn came early and the foliage has already turned brown, but these trees are evergreens. Other fires burned slower and would burn the foliage completely off of the branches leaving behind charred trees typical of what a burned forest would look like. Either way, the effect is the same; many trees were destroyed in the fierce fighting. The dead trees are now petrified sentinels that gave their lives for the defense of Israel.

Israel's forests were not the only natural resources affected by the war. The Hula Valley in Northern Israel is wine country and several communities involved in growing grape vines were destroyed and burned. Because of the fire and smoke much of the area will be unable to produce grapes for another seven years. The economic impact on the region will be enormous.

The Hula Valley has also a natural wetland developed by the JNF. This area is home to migratory birds from Europe and Asia traveling to Africa. The wetlands sustained substantial damage due to subterranean fires caused by the Katyusha rockets. The peat moss underground would ignite upon impact and cause large areas to burn under the ground. The entire area would then have to be flooded destroying the wildlife and vegetation in order to put out the fire. The Hula valley was once a huge swamp that was drained by the Israelis to make use of the land for farming. They have now had to re-flood some of the land in order to put out the underground fires.

The JNF is facing a large ecological and economic crisis. Much of what the Israeli people have worked for the last 50 years has been destroyed. The forests will need to be cut and replanted; firefighting equipment will need to be replaced and natural wetlands restored. It will be at least 50 years before the Biriya forest or the Naphtali forest will be at its growth level of 30 days ago.