Haifa Zangana A dust storm that covered seven Iraqi governorates, including Baghdad, caused more than 5,000 cases of suffocation and the death of one person. Social media sites circulated astonishing pictures of the red dust that enveloped the atmosphere, people and places for the seventh time in a month. The pictures were accompanied by analyses and theories, combining scie
Read MoreExecutive Summary: In addition to the many challenges facing Iraq now, desertification is yet another formidable challenge that needs immediate attention. The seemingly unstoppable desert expansion is creeping up and taking over the fertile lands in Iraq in unprecedented speed! It is manifested in a dramatic shrinking of green cover and the losses of millions of trees an
Read MoreDecades of war, poverty, and fossil fuel extraction have devastated the country’s environment and its people. Top: Kamila Rashid says an oil refinery now sits on what used to be her family’s land. All photos by LYNZY BILLING for UNDARK IT’S 6 P.M. and the pink-tinged skies turn black above Agolan, a village on the outskirts of Erbil in the Kurdistan region of norther
Read MoreThird year of drought forces Iraq to cut crop area in half Adverse weather sent global wheat prices near multiyear high A dried up river bed in the al-Huwaiza Marshes south of Baghdad in September., Photographer: Asaad Niazi/AFP/Getty Images A third straight year of drought is forcing Iraq to cut its crop area in half, another example of how extreme weather caused b
Read MoreThis article is more than 1 month old To meet climate targets and avoid economic collapse, countries such as Iraq need international support in the transition to clean energy Ali Allawi is deputy prime minister and finance minister of Iraq. Fatih Birol is executive director of the International Energy Agency In the Middle East and north Africa, global warming
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