Shafaq News- Baghdad/ Babil

A massive dust storm sweeping across western Iraq reached Baghdad on Monday before moving south toward Babil province, as authorities issued health warnings and urged residents to remain indoors.

Shafaq News images from Babil showed the skies turning orange as the storm spread across the province after intensifying in Al-Anbar province.

Najaf Health Directorate chief Abdullah Mohammed Al-Ghazali instructed hospitals to raise their medical preparedness levels in response to the dusty conditions, calling for direct supervision of emergency wards and the full presence of doctors, health workers, and nursing staff, alongside adequate supplies of medicines and medical equipment, particularly for suffocation, asthma, and allergy cases.

Authorities also urged citizens to follow safety guidelines and stay indoors as much as possible until weather conditions improve and stability gradually returns.

Iraq has experienced a sharp rise in dust storms during the 2025 season, with repeated waves disrupting daily life, grounding flights, and sending thousands to hospitals with respiratory problems. Environmental experts link the worsening storms to drought, desertification, declining vegetation cover, and climate change, warning that Iraq is becoming increasingly vulnerable to extreme weather events.

Read more: Iraq’s dust storms: deep environmental and political fault lines