On Monday, Baghdad International Airport suspended flights for several hours due to a new dust storm that hit the Iraqi capital. This phenomenon has recurred significantly in recent months in Iraq, which is among the countries hardest hit by climate change in the world. .
Dust storms have become a frequent occurrence with increasing frequency in Iraq over the past two months, with an almost weekly occurrence. At least ten dust storms have occurred in Iraq since mid-April.
Experts attribute this phenomenon to climate change, lack of rain and desertification. Iraq is among the top five countries most vulnerable to climate change and desertification in the world, especially due to the increasing drought with high temperatures exceeding fifty degrees Celsius during the days in the summer. Early in the morning, the sky of Baghdad was covered with a layer of dust, which reduced visibility by several hundred meters. Therefore, the Baghdad International Airport Authority has decided to suspend flights in the morning before they can resume at 10:30 am Baghdad time, an airport source said. The dust storm forced authorities in Najaf province, south of Baghdad, to close the city’s airport for several hours before returning to work. Najaf Airport, which includes important religious centers, annually receives millions of visitors from around the world. In May, dust storms in Iraq killed one person and suffocated thousands.
In an interview with an Iraqi news agency, the director general of the Iraqi environment ministry’s technical department warned of an increase in sandstorms, especially after the number of dusty days rose to “272 days a year for two decades.” And he expected: “In 2050, the number of dusty days per year will reach 300.” According to the ministry, increasing vegetation cover and planting dense trees that act as windbreaks are the most important decisions needed to reduce the frequency of sandstorms. At the beginning June, Iraqi President Barham Salih called for action to combat climate change, saying, “Combating climate change must become a national priority for Iraq, and there is no room for inaction as it is an existential threat to Iraq.”
