Iraq: Decline in Tigris and Euphrates Water Levels Requires Urgent International Intervention

Iraqi Prime Minister Muhammad Shiya al-Sudani confirmed today that the government intends to pursue seawater desalination, emphasizing that the decline in water levels of the Tigris and Euphrates rivers necessitates "urgent international intervention." The official spokesperson for the Iraqi Ministry of Water Resources, Khaled Shamail, noted in March that "more than 60% of Iraq's water revenues come from Turkey, which is simultaneously holding back water from the Tigris and Euphrates in its dams. Based on these factors, Iraq is experiencing a drought period and is the fifth most affected country in the world by climate change and drought." The Ministry of Water Resources previously warned that the water situation in Iraq is the worst it has been since the 1930s.