Water Crisis Looms as Türkiye's Temporary Relief for Iraq Nears End
Iraq's water crisis is set to worsen as a temporary increase in water flow from Türkiye ends this month. An observatory predicts no extension, citing Iraq's poor water management as national reserves hit a record low.
ERBIL (Kurdistan24) – Iraq is bracing for a significant escalation of its severe water crisis as a temporary increase in water releases from neighboring Türkiye is set to conclude at the end of August, with a key monitoring group now predicting that Ankara will not extend the critical relief measure. This development casts a dark shadow over a nation already grappling with what its own water minister has described as the lowest water reserve levels on record.
On Saturday, the Green Iraq Observatory published a sobering report announcing that August will be the last month of the increased water flow. The observatory stated that while Türkiye gives great importance to the issue of water, Iraq, in stark contrast, greatly neglects the topic.
This assessment comes despite Iraq receiving numerous warnings about the need to reduce water waste in both domestic and agricultural use. The report noted that while Türkiye had agreed to increase the water flow to Iraq via the Tigris River for the months of July and August, Türkiye's announcement made no mention of whether the release would continue beyond that two-month period.
According to the Green Iraq Observatory, Iraq's predicament is compounded by internal failures. The observatory stated that Iraq has so far been unsuccessful in water management. This is in addition to its failed negotiations with delegations from neighboring countries on the crucial water issue, which has led to negative outcomes from the talks.
This assessment of mismanagement aligns with the grim reality articulated by Iraq's Minister of Water Resources, Aoun Dhiab, who has stated that the country's water reserve levels have reached their lowest point in history.
The temporary reprieve began in early July, when Türkiye started releasing additional water from the Tigris River in a measure scheduled to continue only until the end of this month. The move was intended to provide Iraq with some relief from its deepening water crisis.
The decision to increase the flow to 420 cubic meters of water per second was made following a high-level meeting in Ankara between Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and Iraqi Parliament Speaker Mahmoud al-Mashhadani.
For years, Iraq has been gripped by a multifaceted crisis of drought and water scarcity.
The crisis is caused by a combination of factors, including persistently low rainfall, the severe impacts of global climate change, and the continually declining water levels of the vital Tigris and Euphrates rivers, which are the nation's primary sources of water.
