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‘Water War’ Threatens Syria Lifeline
July 18th, 2014
Via Al Jazeera, a report on how Syria’s water supplies have dropped in key areas due to a sharp increase in production at the rebel-controlled Euphrates Dam: When severe water cuts began to hit Aleppo province in early May, residents started referring to a “water war” being waged at the expense of civilians. Images of […]
Read more »Syria: Example Of Climate Change’s Impact
September 5th, 2013
Via Legal Planet, an interesting article on an assessment of environmental factors — in particular, a devastating drought — as the proximate cause of the Syrian civil war: [USDA Foreign Agricultural Service, Commodity Intelligence Report, May 9, 2008] In considering the complex and painful question of whether to intervene in Syria, policymakers should take a close […]
Read more »Syria: Without Water, Revolution
May 19th, 2013
Courtesy of The New York Times, an interesting Op-Ed by Thomas Friedman examining the link between drought and revolution in Syria: I just spent a day in this northeast Syrian town. It was terrifying — much more so than I anticipated — but not because we were threatened in any way by the Free Syrian […]
Read more »How Unsustainable Water Policies Crippled The Assad Regime
September 14th, 2012
Via Green Prophet, an interesting article on the link between unsustainable water policies and the chaos that ensued in Syria: The link between climate change and political instability may still be ambiguous, but recent research is uncovering a connection between sustainable water and food policies and the survival of governments. Shahrzad Mohtadi found that whilst a […]
Read more »Syria: Climate Change, Drought and Social Unrest
March 3rd, 2012
Via Think Progress, an article examining the link between drought and water scarcity and the current Syrian unrest. As the report notes: NOAA concluded in 2011 that “human-caused climate change [is now] a major factor in more frequent Mediterranean droughts.â€Â Reds and oranges highlight lands around the Mediterranean that experienced significantly drier winters during 1971-2010 than […]
Read more »Syria And Turkey Reconcile Water Dispute With Friendship Dam
April 14th, 2011
Via Syria Today, a report on the establishment of the Friendship Dam on the Asi-Orontes River, the latest sign of deepening ties between Syria and Turkey. As the article notes: The launch of the Friendship Dam on February 6. On February 6, the prime ministers of Syria and Turkey laid the foundation stone of the […]
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