Report by PA Agriculture Ministry blames “the occupation” for desertification "in more than 50% of the land"

Headline: "The steps of the occupation and its settlers are the primary cause – a report: Signs of desertification are appearing in more than 50% of the Palestinian lands"

"The results of the first national report presented to the secretariat of the UN Convention to Combat Desertification revealed that signs of desertification are appearing in more than 50% of the land of Palestine, which requires a great effort in order to rehabilitate the deteriorating natural resources, and approximately 15% of [the resources] are deteriorating.

The report – written by the General Directorate of Forests, Pastures, and Wildlife in the [PA] Ministry of Agriculture for World Day to Combat Desertification [and Drought], which occurs today [June 17, 2019] – noted that the most important cause of the deterioration of the lands in Palestine is the occupation, which is carrying out the clearing of agricultural lands and the systematic cutting down of trees (more than a million different trees since 2000) [parentheses in source] through the settlers or the occupation forces, which clear broad areas of civilian land, and establish dozens of military camps and settlements on forest lands after cutting them down."