HARF BEIT HASNA, Lebanon (AP) Farmers in a small town perched on a northern Lebanese mountain have long refused to accept defeat even as the government abandoned them to a life off the grid. Harf Beit Hasna receives almost no basic services.
Lebanon is the most water-rich country in the Middle East, but its farming communities are struggling to keep their soil from drying. The small town of Harf Beit Hasna, up on a mountain in the north, has long survived by creating ponds to hold rain water. It relies on them completely to water their crops because the government never connected the town to the water system or provided other basic services. In the past, the pools were enough to grow profitable crops and livestock. But with rain dwindling, families struggle to grow enough to survive.