Syrian farmers pick olives early, fearing military action
AL-BARAH, Syria — Fearing a possible military action, farmers are harvesting their olives earlier than usual in this region south of Idlib.
"The harvest season is usually next month, but because we fear military operations and airstrikes from the Syrian forces, we picked the olives a month earlier," explains Muhammad Al-Arab, a resident of the town of Al-Barah.
But the harvest is premature and yields less olive oil, says Muhammad.
"This land used to produce 20 to 30 tanks of olive oil. Because of the early harvest, we will lose more than half of the production," he adds.
Farmers usually wait for the first rainfalls in November before picking their olives.
But waiting might mean losing all of the season's crops.
A possible military operation by the Syrian forces and their ally Russia would block the farmers from getting to their land and picking their olives.
Farmers say an olive field was hit by Syrian artillery shelling last week while farmers were harvesting, although no casualties were recorded.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said last week that a Russian airstrike that targeted Turkey-backed Syrian rebels in Idlib earlier in the week was an indication that Moscow was not looking for a lasting peace in the region.
The strike, which killed dozens of rebel fighters and civilians, was the deadliest in Idlib since a Turkish-Russian-brokered truce there.
"The harvest season is usually next month, but because we fear military operations and airstrikes from the Syrian forces, we picked the olives a month earlier," explains Muhammad Al-Arab, a resident of the town of Al-Barah.
But the harvest is premature and yields less olive oil, says Muhammad.
"This land used to produce 20 to 30 tanks of olive oil. Because of the early harvest, we will lose more than half of the production," he adds.
Farmers usually wait for the first rainfalls in November before picking their olives.
But waiting might mean losing all of the season's crops.
A possible military operation by the Syrian forces and their ally Russia would block the farmers from getting to their land and picking their olives.
Farmers say an olive field was hit by Syrian artillery shelling last week while farmers were harvesting, although no casualties were recorded.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said last week that a Russian airstrike that targeted Turkey-backed Syrian rebels in Idlib earlier in the week was an indication that Moscow was not looking for a lasting peace in the region.
The strike, which killed dozens of rebel fighters and civilians, was the deadliest in Idlib since a Turkish-Russian-brokered truce there.