Latest news with #Euphrates
The National
28-05-2025
- General
- The National
Six killed in attack by pro-government militias on tribal area in Syria's north-east
Pro-government militias have killed six people in an attack on a tribal farming community near the border with Turkey in Syria 's north-east, residents said on Wednesday, underscoring difficulties the new administration has in controlling outlying areas. The violence in the town of Suluk, to the east of the Euphrates River in Raqqa governorate, came after members of the Unai, the main tribe in the area, expelled on Monday a militia called the Sunni Lions, which is part of a constellation of armed groups in the region supported by Ankara and allied with Syria's ruling Hayat Tahrir Al Sham (HTS). The main conflict in the north-east is between US-backed Kurdish forces and the Turkish-backed government in Damascus and its auxiliaries. The violence in Suluk indicates disagreements between the central authorities and Arab tribes. The tribes have been trying to regain influence on their home turf, after their areas repeatedly changed hands in the 14 years of Syria's civil war between anti-Assad rebel Kurdish militias, pro-Iranian forces and finally Turkish-backed forces. Local resident Hamlan Al Ein said the expulsion of the Sunni Lions was sparked by the beating by militiamen of an elderly man in the street while he was with his grandchild. "It was the tipping point. People are fed up with their racketeering and thuggishness," Mr Al Ein told The National. He said militiamen then returned to Suluk on Tuesday, accompanied by units of the Syrian National Army, another militia supported by Turkey. "They fired mortar rounds and Dushkas randomly," Mr Al Ein said, referring to a Soviet-era heavy machine-gun. "They broke into shops and rampaged in the town." The dead comprised two tribal fighters and four civilians, he said. There was no information about casualties among the attacking forces. Abdallah Najm, commander of the Sunni Lions, appeared in a video statement from the main square in Suluk. He accused the Unai of "provocation against the government" and marring joy over the removal of Syria's former Bashar Al Assad regime. Mr Najm brandished a tribal robe at the end of his statement, a symbol of victory. The Syrian National Army captured Suluk in 2018 from the mostly Kurdish Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), a militia supported by the US that still controls large areas of north-east Syria. Since the fall of former president Mr Al Assad, the Syrian National Army, the Sunni Lions and other Arab militias have allied with HTS. HTS, which was formerly linked with Al Qaeda, is led by Ahmad Al Shara, the current Syrian president. Mr Al Shara has been seeking to enlist tribal support in the east to undermine the SDF. He has used a similar strategy against other foes in his quest to consolidate control over the country.
Asharq Al-Awsat
25-05-2025
- Climate
- Asharq Al-Awsat
Iraq's Water Reserves Lowest in 80 Years after Dry Rainy Season
Iraq's water reserves are at their lowest in 80 years after a dry rainy season, a government official said Sunday, as its share from the Tigris and Euphrates rivers shrinks. Water is a major issue in the country of 46 million people undergoing a serious environmental crisis because of climate change, drought, rising temperatures and declining rainfall. Authorities also blame upstream dams built in neighbouring Iran and Türkiye for dramatically lowering the flow of the once-mighty Tigris and Euphrates, which have irrigated Iraq for millennia. "The summer season should begin with at least 18 billion cubic meters... yet we only have about 10 billion cubic meters," water resources ministry spokesperson Khaled Shamal told AFP. "Last year our strategic reserves were better. It was double what we have now," Shamal said. "We haven't seen such a low reserve in 80 years," he added, saying this was mostly due to the reduced flow from the two rivers. Iraq currently receives less than 40 percent of its share from the Tigris and Euphrates, according to Shamal. He said sparse rainfall this winter and low water levels from melting snow has worsened the situation in Iraq, considered by the United Nations to be one of the five countries most vulnerable to some impacts of climate change. Water shortages have forced many farmers in Iraq to abandon the land, and authorities have drastically reduced farming activity to ensure sufficient supplies of drinking water. Agricultural planning in Iraq always depends on water, and this year it aims to preserve "green spaces and productive areas" amounting to more than 1.5 million Iraqi dunams (375,000 hectares), said Shamal. Last year, authorities allowed farmers to cultivate 2.5 million dunams of corn, rice, and orchards, according to the water ministry. Water has been a source of tension between Iraq and Türkiye, which has urged Baghdad to adopt efficient water management plans. In 2024, Iraq and Türkiye signed a 10-year "framework agreement", mostly to invest in projects to ensure better water resources management.
The National
25-05-2025
- Climate
- The National
Iraq's water reserves fall by nearly half to lowest levels in 80 years
Iraq's water reserves are at their lowest levels in 80 years after a dry rainy season, a government official said on Sunday, as its intake from the Tigris and Euphrates rivers shrinks. Water is a major issue in a country of 46 million people undergoing a serious environmental crisis because of climate change, drought, rising temperatures and declining rainfall. Authorities also blame upstream dams built in neighbouring Iran and Turkey for lowering the flow of the Tigris and Euphrates, which have irrigated Iraq for thousands of years. 'The summer season should begin with at least 18 billion cubic metres … yet we only have about 10 billion cubic metres,' Water Resources Ministry spokesman Khaled Shamal told AFP. 'Last year, our strategic reserves were better. It was double what we have now,' Mr Shamal said. 'We haven't seen such a low reserve in 80 years,' he added, which he said was mostly due to the reduced flow from the two rivers. He said sparse rainfall this winter and low water levels from melting snow has worsened the situation in Iraq, considered by the United Nations to be one of the five countries most vulnerable to some effects of climate change. Water shortages have forced many farmers in Iraq to abandon the land, and authorities have reduced farming activity to ensure sufficient supplies of drinking water. Agricultural planning in Iraq always depends on water, and this year it aims to preserve 'green spaces and productive areas' amounting to more than 1.5 million Iraqi dunams (375,000 hectares), said Mr Shamal. Last year, authorities allowed farmers to cultivate 2.5 million dunams of corn, rice, and orchards, according to the Water Ministry. Water has been a source of tension between Iraq and Turkey, which has urged Baghdad to adopt efficient water management plans. In 2024, Iraq and Turkey signed a 10-year 'framework agreement', mostly to invest in projects to ensure better water resources management.
The National
19-05-2025
- Politics
- The National
Syrian government tries to regain control of country's east after a car bomb kills five
Authorities sent troops to eastern Syria on Monday, a day after a car bomb killed five people, residents said, in an area of fault lines in the fight against ISIS and tension between Arabs and Kurds. Three policemen were among the dead in the attack near a security compound in the city of Al Mayadin, official media said. The bombing undermines efforts by the government to stabilise Syria, work that received a boost when US President Donald Trump met Syrian leader Ahmad Al Shara in Doha last week during his Gulf trip. The government enforces checkpoints near Al Mayadin and other sites along the Euphrates River Valley in the east as Defence Ministry reinforcements are awaited from central Syria, the sources told The National. Ministry officials also visited the site of the bombing. Qassem Al Shawa, a technician, told The National that a small security presence in Al Mayadin made the bombing easy. He said that recruitment to new state security forces from militias has been slow, partly as a result of screening volunteers for allegiances that may not be in line with the new leadership in Damascus. Al Mayadin, Mr Al Shawa said, is also open to the Badiya, the vast desert that stretches to the outskirts of Damascus and the Iraqi border, where ISIS has pockets of activities. 'It is no secret that ISIS has cells in Al Mayadin,' said Mr Al Shawa, who works in the nearby Al Omar oilfield, which is controlled by the US. The government has not blamed any group for the bombing and there has been no claim of responsibility. It was the second major bombing in government areas since an attack killed 20 people in February near Manbij, in Aleppo governorate. Neither perpetrators nor suspects have been identified. Al Omar and areas to the north of Al Mayadin, known as Al Jazeera, are within the domain of the Syrian Democratic Forces, a mostly Kurdish militia supported by the US, and ideologically at odds with the government, whose position was secured by Hayat Tahrir Al Sham, an umbrella group of rebel forces that ran the Assad regime out of Syria in December. On Sunday, an Interior Ministry official told The National that troops have commenced operations to 'eradicate' ISIS from urban centres, after a counter-terrorism raid in Aleppo killed three members of the terrorist group. A day before meeting Mr Al Shara, Mr Trump said that the US would lift sanctions on Syria, to give the country 'a chance at greatness'. His Secretary of State Marco Rubio said it remains too early to judge whether the new government will succeed in meeting counter-terrorism measures.
Jordan Times
01-03-2025
- Climate
- Jordan Times
Impact of climate change on cultural heritage: Middle East at risk
AMMAN — The climate change directly affects monuments in different parts of the world. The current climate of the Middle East ranges from mostly temperate in its northern half to extremely arid in its southern half. Precipitation falls mainly November through April, the most abundant amounts falling in the region's northern half. However, due to climate change, some winters are colder and with more precipitation. For a few years, rain fell in May and early June which was not the case 20-30 years ago. These environmental conditions, especially the timing and abundance of precipitation, play a key role in the region's economies, whether industry, tourism, or, perhaps most importantly, agriculture, noted Professor Benjamin Porter from Berkeley University. Porter added that the extent to which countries depend on agriculture for food and jobs varies across the region and is contingent on the availability of arable land, labour forces, and proximity to markets. "Exacerbating the current economic situation even more are the region's relatively high unemployment and underemployment levels coupled with the destabilizing events of the past decade, including international wars, civil wars, and the Arab Spring that have introduced volatility and uncertainty into local and national governance," Porter underlined. The professor noted that models developed in the last decade that considers a two- and four-degree increase in global temperature levels before 2050 together project substantial changes in global and regional climate patterns. These changes will impact the Middle East's environment in several ways. Annual summer temperatures will increase and episodes of intense heat will become more common. Winter precipitation levels will also become more erratic; while the southern half of the region will see decreased levels, the northern half may experience extreme unpredictable storms that could cause flooding, Porter elaborated. The professor added that high-altitudes now pack in the northern mountain zones that supply major river systems (e.g., the Euphrates, Tigris, Orontes) will have reduced input, leading to downstream supply being reduced. "Sub-surface aquifers that supply fresh-water springs and oases will not be as fully recharged. At the same time, sea levels will rise, inundating coastlines and the fresh-water river systems that drain into the Mediterranean Sea, the Red Sea, and the Arabian Gulf," Porter explained. Unpredictable extreme weather events, such as spikes in summer temperature and sudden winter rainfalls, will further stress the region. Studies considering global climate change impacts on human populations often point out that the Middle East will be among the hardest hit regions in the world, regardless of whether a two-, four-, or greater degree change is achieved; and these drying conditions will stress the region's rural agricultural industries that are mainly based on crop and livestock production. The contagious disease typical for arid environment will also increase. "At first glance, it may appear insensitive to reflect on the future of cultural heritage in the Middle East given the severe impacts the climate crisis will have on the region's peoples." "However, arbitrary the constructed category of cultural heritage may be, the objects, places, and, at times, practices that constitute it are nonetheless non-renewable resources that play an important role in the quality of life in the Middle East," the professor highlighted. Porter added that many cultural heritage sites serve as the basis for cultural, religious, and national identities, leading countries and their international partners to make significant investments in maintaining them. Despite its deep and sometimes unfortunate entanglements with politics, Porter continued, cultural heritage is, ultimately, maintained by institutions, communities and individuals existing in webs of often-problematic relationships, large and small, a point that Meskell has illustrated in her rigorous treatment of UNESCO "Cultural heritage has served and continues to serve as a key economic resource in the Middle East," Porter said. "The United Nations World Tourism Organisation's report on the Middle East and North Africa region recorded a 10 per cent growth from the previous year's level [figures from 2019, prior to the COVID-19 pandemic] in international tourist arrivals in the region," the professor noted. "This growth during the past few years signalled the region's recovery from internal conflicts and economic decline during the previous decade as well as the robust economies of developed nations with people with spending power to visit the region," Porter concluded.
