Rains revive Iraq’s wetlands after years of drought

A fishing boat glides across the waters of Iraq’s southern marshes, sending ripples shimmering over the once-parched wetlands, now revived by long-awaited rains.

Running through almost the entire Huwaizah Marshes, the returning water is dotted with patches of greenery, with buffaloes soaking in it or wandering slowly nearby, grazing on the lush grass.

Overhead, birds of many kinds flutter, their movements mirrored in the still water below, part of the protected biodiversity of these millennia-old Mesopotamian wetlands.

Years of drought, blamed on climate change and upstream dams in neighbouring countries, have ravaged Iraq’s marshes – the reputed home of the biblical Garden of Eden – nestled between the mighty Tigris and Euphrates rivers.

But a few rainy spells this winter have revived hope among residents and admirers alike.

As he sailed his long wooden boat, wearing his white abaya and keffiyeh, fisherman Kazem Kasid told the AFP news agency that “life will return, along with the fish and livestock, and people will feel that their homeland and future have been restored”.

Iraq’s Water Ministry has said the reservoirs on the Tigris River are almost full, adding that it expects water levels in the Euphrates to rise in the coming days if Syria releases water from its dams.

As a result, the marshlands are experiencing “a relative revival”.

Activist Ahmed Saleh Neema said the Huwaizah Marsh has not seen this much water in years, adding that 85 percent of the wetlands are now submerged, though the water depth still needs to rise.

“It is good. It means that the marshes will not dry this summer,” when temperatures reach 50C.