Over 100 sheep died over the weekend after drinking from a poisoned watering hole in Sharsheret Forest, in southern Israel. Agriculture and Environmental Protection ministries' officials and Society for Protection of Nature in Israel officers have corded off the area and have taken water samples for analysis, in order to deterring the exact nature of the poison. The poisoned area (Photos courtesy of Panet) The Netivot Police, who has jurisdiction over the area, is investigating. According to the information available, Salam al-Assam, a shepherd from Beersheba, who arrived with his herd to the area – apparently as a matter of routine – was left helpless as he saw sheep that drank from the water die a short time afterwards. The poisoning's results "I have a 500-head herd. I lease this plot from the JNF," he said. The area sees considerable hiking traffic he added. "I would hate to think what could have happened if a child had taken a drink of that water," he said. Sources at the Society for Protection of Nature said that one of the biggest concerns as the moment – pending the poison's identification and neutralizing – is that animal and birds that may eat or peck at the carcasses, will suffer secondary poisoning. Society for Protection of Nature officers are disposing of the animals' remains. Erez Erlichman contributed to this report Follow Ynetnews on Facebook and Twitter