Herewith the final declaration of the 1st Mesopotamian Water Forum, which was held on April 6-8, 2019 in Sulaimani (Sulaymaniyah) in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq. More than 180 water activists from the Mesopotamia region and other countries gathered for the 3-day forum at Sulaimani University. Several civil society organizations from all over Mesopotamia –...
Omar Sattar, Al-Monitor, 5 April 2019 BAGHDAD — Although water levels in the Tigris and Euphrates rivers have been rising as torrential rains fill some of the largest dams in Iraq, the threat of drought persists. Turkey is now taking the necessary steps to fill its controversial Ilisu Dam, while Iran continues to cut off tributaries of the rivers flowing...
With this letter, the members and allies of the European Water Movement express their support and solidarity to the people organizing the Mesopotamian Water Forum, a civil society forum on the alternative management of Euphrates and Tigris rivers and their tributaries in Iraq, Turkey, Syria and Iran that will take place between 6 and 8...
Sulaymaniyah, Kurdistan Region of Iraq The Tigris and Euphrates Rivers, historic lifelines of Mesopotamia, stretch across the states of Iraq, Turkey, Syria and Iran. In past decades these rivers have faced environmental degradation and politicization through large dams, river diversions and unsustainable management at the expense of the peoples living in the basin. Negative management...
From 6-8 April 2019 the 1st Mesopotamian Water Forum will take place at the University of Sulaimani, Sulaymaniyah, Kurdistan Region of Iraq. A unique space for open and public dialogue about the status and access of bodies of water in the Mesopotamia. This event will be an important opportunity to promote a society-wide coalition for...
By Omar Al-Jaffal, Al-Monitor, 23 March 2019 Iranian President Hassan Rouhani visited Baghdad March 11 to endorse the two countries’ renewed commitment to the 1975 Algiers Agreement regarding the shared border of the Shatt al-Arab River. The agreement has sat idle for decades, as Iraq has attempted to evade what it sees as unfair terms. However, Iraqi Prime Minister...
From 6-8 April 2019 the 1st Mesopotamian Water Forum will take place at the University of Sulaimani, Sulaymaniyah, Kurdistan Region of Iraq. A unique space for open and public dialogue about the status and access of bodies of water in the Mesopotamia. This event will be an important opportunity to promote a society-wide coalition for...
From 6-8 April 2019 the 1st Mesopotamian Water Forum will take place at the University of Sulaimani, Sulaymaniyah, Kurdistan Region of Iraq. A unique space for open and public dialogue about the status and access of bodies of water in the Mesopotamia. This event will be an important opportunity to promote a society-wide coalition for...
The Mesopotamian Water Forum is an alternative civil society forum for water, an open space to give voice to those who are marginalized and excluded from the discussion about water management in the Mesopotamian region. It will be held from 6-8 April 2019 in Sulaymaniyah, Kurdistan Region of Iraq, and will involve civil society actors...
Farmers in the Al-Badeer region from Kut province depend on water from the Euphrates River. Water shortages this year have caused massive damage to agricultural areas, drastically impacting the livelihood of farmers in the region. The Al-Diwaniyah Forum for Environment and Peace is currently working on this water scarcity crisis. The Forum’s campaign aims to...
