Water Crisis and Drought Threaten 12 Million in Syria, Iraq

Idlib, MINA – More than 12 million people in Syria and Iraq are losing access to water, food and electricity, 13 aid groups warned in a report as they called for urgent action to combat the severe water crisis.

Rising temperatures, record low levels of rainfall, and drought are depriving people across the region of drinking and agricultural water, said the report, published on Monday as quoted from Al Jazeera.

Syria is currently facing its worst drought in 70 years.

Compiled by a group of international organisations, including the Norwegian Refugee Council, the Danish Refugee Council, CARE, Action Against Hunger, and Mercy Corps, among others, the report warned higher temperatures caused by climate change increased the risks and severity of droughts in the region.

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“The changes in the climate also disrupted electricity as dams ran out of water, which in turn impacted the operation of essential infrastructure including health facilities,” they said.

“The total collapse of water and food production for millions of Syrians and Iraqis is imminent,” said Carsten Hansen, regional director for the Norwegian Refugee Council.

“With hundreds of thousands of Iraqis still displaced and many more still fleeing for their lives in Syria, the unfolding water crisis will soon become an unprecedented catastrophe pushing more into displacement,” he added. (T/RE1)

Mi’raj News Agency (MINA)