Latest news with #Asadi
Rudaw Net
29-06-2025
- Politics
- Rudaw Net
Iraq's marshlands are drying up
Also in Iraq KRG delegation arrives in Baghdad amid efforts to resolve financial disputes Iraq's Victory Coalition to skip election Sistani rep warns Iraqis to remain vigilant despite Iran-Israel truce Two Iraqi delegations to arrive in Erbil to resolve financial disputes with KRG A+ A- ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Marshlands in southern Iraq are drying up due to worsening drought and declining groundwater levels, a local official warned, as authorities scramble to mitigate the crisis that has already displaced over 10,000 families. 'Most of the marshlands in the north of our province have dried up, and we are trying to revive some of them through the Tigris River, but there is no solution for the other dried marshlands in our province,' said Zeinab al-Asadi, head of the provincial agriculture committee in Dhi Qar. The Tigris River, one of Iraq's two major waterways, flows from Turkey through northern and central Iraq and is a vital source of water for agriculture, drinking, and the marshlands. 'The groundwater level in our province has decreased significantly, and groundwater continues to drop further. This is a major problem facing the residents,' Asadi added. According to Dhi Qar's meteorology directorate, less than 50 millimeters of rain fell in the province last winter - a decline from over 80 millimeters recorded in previous years. 'This year, there was a drought in our province. The water level in the marshlands has decreased to nearly half a meter, when previously none of them were less than a meter [deep],' Asadi said. 'Certainly, in this season, that remaining half meter will also decrease, because much of it will evaporate,' she said. The prolonged drought and desertification have already displaced thousands of people. The local office of the Ministry of Migration and Displacement reported that by October, more than 10,000 families had been forced to move out of areas surrounding the marshlands. 'Part of the citizens were displaced due to the drying of marshlands and desertification,' Asadi said. To address the crisis, Asadi said they are coordinating with the Ministry of Water Resources to dig new artesian wells across the province. Dhi Qar is home to much of Iraq's historic marshlands, a UNESCO World Heritage Site considered one of the most fertile and ecologically significant areas in the country. The province's population is over 2 million, according to Iraq's census done in November. Iraq's water crisis has been exacerbated by five consecutive years of drought, soaring temperatures, and the construction of upstream dams in neighboring Turkey and Iran. These dams have sharply reduced water inflows into Iraq, leaving the country with less than 40 percent of its entitled share from the Tigris and Euphrates rivers - Iraq's primary water sources. Malik Mohammed contributed to this reported.
Rudaw Net
29-01-2025
- Business
- Rudaw Net
Development Road project to cost over $18 billion: Advisor
Also in Interview TotalEnergies says ready to begin production in Iraq Book chronicles Kurdish struggles through the eyes of Halabja boy 'Kurds have many friends in Europe,' says Swedish MP US testing Syria's new rulers: former Pentagon official A+ A- ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - The Development Road project from southern Iraq to the Turkish border is set to cost $18 billion and the amount is 'subject to increase,' an advisor to Iraq's prime minister said on Tuesday. 'The infrastructure costs between $17-18 billion and is subject to increase, depending on the project's developments. The infrastructure will be owned by the Iraqi government, and there is also an investment structure that will be offered for investment to external parties and other countries,' Nasser al-Asadi, advisor to Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia' al-Sudani, told Rudaw's Nwenar Fatih at the Iraq Development Platform conference in Baghdad. 'We are looking to major international companies to form networks with our local companies, in order to start implementing this project,' he added. The Development Road project is planned from southern Iraq to the Turkish border, connecting the Persian Gulf with Turkey. It aims to enhance Iraq's geopolitical position, boost the economy, and create thousands of job opportunities. The route is expected to link Iraq with the European Union via Turkey. The project is expected to be finished by 2028. 'The infrastructure, which includes the railway, the road, and the rest of the project's components, will be completed within four years, meaning that by the end of 2028, there will be a ready road,' Asadi said. Sudani, who attended the same conference, also touched on the importance of the project for Iraq. 'We have included in the design of the development road path lines for transporting oil and gas, in addition to communications to achieve the connection between Asia and Europe, and provide investment opportunities,' he said. On Tuesday, Asadi told Rudaw that the project extends more than 11 kilometers through Kurdistan Region's Duhok province. Kurdish officials have repeatedly called for the Kurdistan Region to be included in the project. 'There is a great understanding between the brothers in the [Kurdistan] regional government and the central Iraqi government in Baghdad regarding the route of the road,' Asadi explained.
