"Try to imagine how life would change if your water supply suddenly vanished.That’s what happened to the Ma’dan people of southern Iraq—the Marsh Arabs—when the water started to disappear from the Mesopotamian marshes, or 'the land between the rivers', where they had lived for more than 2,000 years."...
In the aftermath of the 2003 war (click here) against Iraq, the newspapers are full of stories about the
monstrosities of Saddam Hussein’s regime. One example is the destruction of the Iraqi
marshlands leading to severe consequences for the human and wildlife population. While the
responsibility for the atrocity against the Marsh Arabs is Saddam Hussein’s, the desiccation of the
marsh environment can be ascribed to a number of the hydro-political decisions made in the
catchment area of the Euphrates and Tigris Rivers. Based on an analysis of the discourses of the
destruction, it is demonstrated how these have changed after the war and are used in the battle to
legitimise the war. This has led to a simplified image of the marshes and the Marsh Arab way of
life. As the paper shows, a more complex approach towards the processes leading to this human
and environmental disaster is required, if repatriation and rehabilitation of the area are to stand a
chance....
By Ruth Sherlock
Chibaish, Iraq - A water buffalo, (click here) her stomach bloated and haunches sunken, lies dying on a dry expanse of cracked earth. Her calf nuzzles her but she doesn't respond. A few yards away, another water buffalo, all skin and bone, wallows in the mud at the edge of the drying marsh waters.
The people who herd these animals in Iraq's southern marshlands are unable to save them. Drought and extreme temperatures that scientists link to climate change are altering the habitat around them and slowly ending a way of life as old as civilization itself....
The people who herd these animals in Iraq's southern marshlands are unable to save them. Drought and extreme temperatures that scientists link to climate change are altering the habitat around them and slowly ending a way of life as old as civilization itself....
