05-07-2025
Syria pledges fair Euphrates water allocation to Iraq
Shafaq News - Baghdad/Damascus
Syria will continue delivering Iraq's agreed share of the Euphrates River under existing treaties, a top Syrian water official said on Saturday, as both countries face declining river flows and prolonged drought.
Ahmad al-Kawan, Director of Syria's General Authority for Water Resources, told Shafaq News that Iraq receives 58 percent of the Euphrates' volume at the Syrian–Turkish border, while Syria keeps the remaining 42 percent, noting that Turkiye is obligated to release more than 500 cubic meters per second on average and to compensate for monthly shortfalls.
Water flowing to Iraq passes through al-Bukamal in eastern Syria, sourced from upstream inflows entering Syria at Jarabulus. Al-Kawan confirmed that a joint Iraqi–Syrian committee is monitoring the quantities reaching Iraq, and both sides intend to install a modern gauging station at the border.
'These arrangements reflect the two countries' commitment to fair distribution and transparent tracking of Euphrates water,' he emphasized.
Earlier this week, Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani announced that both Turkiye and Syria had agreed to increase water discharges, with Ankara releasing 320 cubic meters per second toward Mosul Dam and 350 through Syria.
Iraq, one of the world's most climate-affected countries, faces intensifying water shortages linked to low rainfall, rising temperatures, and upstream controls by Turkiye and Iran. A 2022 World Bank report estimated that Iraq would need $233B in investment by 2040—roughly 6 percent of its GDP annually—to meet essential development goals and adapt to climate stress.
In a separate 2025 assessment, Iraq's Strategic Center for Human Rights warned that nearly 30 percent of the country's productive farmland has been lost over the past three decades due to persistent drought and water scarcity.
