A Lebanese woman from the town of Al-Manara says: West Bekaa site "Sky News Arabia"that "Many people around me have had cancer. My father died of it two years ago, weeks before my uncle, and last week the neighbor’s son, and before him my uncle’s wife. Every day we hear about injuries in a town whose population does not exceed 4 thousand, and the situation applies to neighboring towns".
The Chairman of the Board of Directors of the National Authority for the Litani River, Sami Alawia, says: "The Lebanese are all susceptible to cancer, but the Bekaa is the biggest problem".
According to an upper interview for the site "Sky News Arabia"The reasons for the spread of cancer in the Bekaa are:
• The population lives in an agricultural environment irrigated with contaminated water that causes cancer.
• The population adopts a mixture of polluted diet, in addition to burning waste in the area, which leads to the deterioration of the public health system.
A report from the National Authority of the Litani River dating back to May 2020, indicates that the site "Sky News Arabia" a copy of it, to "High rates of cancer were recorded in Bekaa towns".
The report attributed the reasons for this to the presence of some pollutants in the area, and their leakage into the air andunderground water and agricultural land.
The report also placed the responsibility on factories that dispose of their waste in the Litani River, which are factories for cosmetics, detergents and paints, which numbered 9 in the initial survey, which included 192 industrial establishments.
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The former head of the Parliamentary Health Committee, Dr. Assem Araji, says: "The rate of cancer incidence in the Bekaa and the areas adjacent to the Litani River is high".
According to the hadith of Araji for the site "Sky News Arabia"it "There are no statistics. We ask the relevant ministries to prepare a spreadsheet of cancer cases in Lebanon".
He adds: "The percentage is very high, and several Bekaa towns are suffering from pollution by sewage and industrial waste, the use of fertilizers in agriculture, and solid waste dumped in the Litani River.".
The former parliamentarian asserted: "We presented a bill and it became a law in the House of Representatives bearing the number 63, to remove the sources of pollution in the Bekaa within 7 years, at a cost of 800 million dollars.".
but "An amount in Lebanese pounds equivalent to about 400 million dollars was spent, and due to the economic crisis, its value is no longer sufficient to complete the project".
Araji warned of "The high levels of nitrates, mercury and carcinogens carried by the river to Lake Qaraoun in the Bekaa"indicating that "Cancer rates are constantly rising, especially in the digestive system and pancreas".
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In the absence of official statistics, residents say that cancer is remarkably invading the towns of the central and western Bekaa, amid reports indicating that the pollution of the Litani River is one of the most important causes of the disease’s spread.
The crops of the Bekaa Valley are irrigated with water Litani RiverWhich was described as polluted according to local reports, knowing that the region’s agricultural production of vegetables and fruits is distributed to the rest of Lebanon, including the capital, Beirut.
A Lebanese woman from the town of Al-Manara says: West Bekaa For “Sky News Arabia”, “Many of those around me have contracted cancer. My father died of it two years ago, weeks before my uncle, and last week the neighbor’s son, and before him my uncle’s wife. Every day we hear about injuries in a town whose population does not exceed 4 thousand people, and the situation is It applies to neighboring towns.
The Chairman of the Board of Directors of the National Authority for the Litani River, Sami Alawia, said, “All Lebanese are vulnerable to cancer, but in the Bekaa the problem is the biggest.”
According to Alawia’s interview with “Sky News Arabia”, the reasons for the spread of cancer in the Bekaa are:
• The population lives in an agricultural environment irrigated with contaminated water that causes cancer.
• The population adopts a mixture of contaminated diet, in addition to burning waste in the area, which leads to the deterioration of the public health system.
A report by the National Authority of the Litani River dating back to May 2020, a copy of which was obtained by “Sky News Arabia”, indicates that “high rates of cancer were recorded in the Bekaa towns.”
The report attributed the reasons for this to the presence of some pollutants in the area, and their leakage into the air andunderground water and agricultural land.
The report also placed the responsibility on factories that dispose of their waste in the Litani River, which are factories for cosmetics, detergents and paints, which numbered 9 in the initial survey, which included 192 industrial establishments.
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The former head of the Parliamentary Health Committee, Dr. Assem Araji, said that “the rate of cancer cases in the Bekaa and the areas adjacent to the Litani River is high.”
According to Araji’s interview with “Sky News Arabia”, “there are no statistics. We call on the competent ministries to prepare a spreadsheet of cancer cases in Lebanon“.
He added, “The percentage is very high, and several Bekaa towns are suffering from pollution from sewage and industrial waste, the use of fertilizers in agriculture, and solid waste dumped in the Litani River.”
The former parliamentarian confirmed: “We presented a bill and it became a law in the House of Representatives bearing the number 63, to remove the sources of pollution in the Bekaa within 7 years, at a cost of 800 million dollars.”
However, “a sum in Lebanese pounds equivalent to about 400 million dollars was disbursed, and due to the economic crisis, its value is no longer sufficient to complete the project.”
Araji warned of “the high rates of nitrates, mercury and carcinogens that the river carries to Lake Qaraoun in the Bekaa,” noting that “the rates of cancer are constantly rising, especially in the digestive system and pancreas.”