Drought forces mass exodus in Dhi Qar

Shafaq News – Dhi Qar

The worsening drought in southern Iraq’s Dhi Qar province has displaced more than 10,000 families, the Green Iraq Observatory revealed on Monday.

In a statement, Green Iraq Observatory member Bushra al-Taie said the mass displacement has occurred across rural areas in Dhi Qar, with families fleeing to urban centers in search of water and basic services. Humanitarian efforts by the provincial migration department have included food baskets, electrical appliances, and training programs to help displaced households adapt to their new conditions.

The buffalo population (a key livestock for southern Iraq) in the province has sharply declined from 21,000 to just 10,000 over the past two years, al-Taie noted, attributing the losses directly to prolonged water scarcity.

Iraq has faced an accelerating water crisis in recent years, driven by declining rainfall, rising temperatures, and upstream dam construction in neighboring countries.

Water levels in the Tigris and Euphrates rivers—critical lifelines for agriculture and livestock—have reached historic lows.

Amid this crisis, Iraq dominated the list of the world’s hottest locations in the past 24 hours, with 13 cities making the top 15, according to data from the Placerville weather station in California.

Basra International Airport recorded the planet’s highest temperature at 50.7°C, followed by Amarah at 50°C, and Basra al-Hussein at 49.9°C. The Iranian city of Abadan ranked fourth with 49.6°C, while Ali al-Gharbi in Iraq came fifth at 49.5°C.