Iraq
Dust storm in Iraq's city of Nasiriyah in the southern Dhi Qar province, on April 9, 2022. Photo: AFP
ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Baghdad airport on Tuesday suspended its flights as a recent dust storm engulfed the Iraqi capital, state media reported.
Baghdad International Airport has indefinitely suspended its outbound and inbound flights as a heavy dust storm has impaired visibility across the city, spokesperson for the Civil Aviation Authority Jihad al-Diwan told INA. The dust storm is expected to linger until the end of the week.
Baghdad airport has resumed its flights, Diwan confirmed to Rudaw English on Wednesday.
Najaf has also halted its flights until 5:00 pm on Tuesday.
Poor visibility conditions are a danger when aircrafts land and take off. The dust could also scour plane surfaces and damage engines.
The fourth sandstorm to hit Iraq in the past five weeks. Level of visibility over the Tigris River this morning. pic.twitter.com/Zvfroqtd9F
— Hamzeh Hadad حمزة حداد (@HamzehKarkhi) April 12, 2022
A dust storm swept through Iraq and the Kurdistan Region on Thursday, leaving hundreds of people in hospital due to respiratory problems.
Erbil and Sulaimani airports suspended flights temporarily after the dust shrouded both cities.
Dust storms are not uncommon in Iraq but are becoming more frequent due to drought and climate change with the country recording low rainfall and rising temperatures. Iraq is among the most affected countries by climate change.
A dust storm in March left over a thousand people in the hospital in Baghdad.
Iraq's environment ministry said on Tuesday the number of dusty days in Iraq has increased from 243 to 272 days per year over the past two decades, and it is expected to reach 300 dusty days per year in 2050.
Experts believe the dust increases as a result of the worsening drought which reduces the flow of water in the Tigris and Euphrates, creating drier and dustier land more susceptible to sand storms.
Updated on April 13, 11:36 am with comment from spokesperson for the Civil Aviation Authority Jihad al-Diwan on the resumption of flights
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