Climate Change Fuels Severe Drought in Syria, Iraq and Iran, Displacing Millions and Exacerbating Food Insecurity

Scientific Study Highlights How Fossil Fuel Combustion Increases Extreme Drought Likelihood 25x in Syria and Iraq, 16x in Iran, Sparking Unprecedented Humanitarian Crises Amid Tensions Over Depleting Water Supplies and Skyrocketing Food Prices.

Human-made climate change, fueled by fossil fuel combustion, is driving a severe drought in Syria, Iraq, and Iran, areas encompassing the Fertile Crescent, leading to unprecedented humanitarian crises driven by dwindling water supplies and food insecurity.
The drought, the second worst on record, is considered as an 'agricultural drought' and has shrunken wheat crops leading to increased tensions between neighboring countries over water supplies, causing mass displacement and pushing millions into hunger.
The increased temperatures due to fossil fuel burning have resulted in conditions 16 times more likely to cause extreme drought in Iran, and 25 times in Syria and Iraq, had global warming not been a factor.
It is estimated that in the coming years, such extreme drought will occur at least once every decade in Syria and Iraq and twice every decade in Iran, indicating that the climatic conditions will worsen in these countries.
Political instability, weak governance over water sources, reliance on wasteful irrigation techniques, a rapidly growing population, and urbanization have compounded the impact of climate change on these regions. In Iraq alone, 61% of households face water shortages.