Arab Press

بالشعب و للشعب
Friday, Jun 20, 2025

Iraqi Kurdistan faces water 'catastrophe' as Iran cuts off rivers

Iraqi Kurdistan faces water 'catastrophe' as Iran cuts off rivers

The Kurdistan region is facing a humanitarian crisis due to Iran’s dam projects and water resources diversion, affecting hundreds of thousands of people

Iraqi Kurdistan has suffered its fair share of water crises over the decades, but experts warn that a catastrophe is now looming large as Iran blocks major water supplies from the region’s two main rivers - the primary sources of livelihood for nearly two million people.

The Sirwan and Little Zab rivers are crucial sources for the two major dams in the region, Darbandikhan and Dukan, and if Iran continues limiting the water flow into Iraq, the consequences will be disastrous for the people and the environment, Darbandikhan's director Rahman Khani told Middle East Eye.

Iran has been reducing the flow of water to Iraq over the past three years, resulting in agricultural damage and water shortages, but last month Iraqi officials warned that flows coming from northwestern Iran into Sirwan and Little Zab have significantly dropped.


Low water level seen in Darbandikhan Dam in northern Iraq


Khani said that nearly two million people depend on the rivers that flow through Halabja, Sulaymaniyah, Garmiyan district and Diyala province for agriculture, fishing projects, drinking water, tourism and power production.

“In a couple of years, Iran’s dams projects will not only create a catastrophe that will force people to migrate to other places, but will also have an impact on farmland, wildlife, and tourism,” Khani said.

“What continues life here is opening the reserved water in the dam,” he said, cautioning that they cannot continue to flow water from their reservoir for too long.


Water levels


According to Khani, water levels in Darbandikhan dam are decreasing at a rate of 15cm daily and the water is six metres lower than the same period last year, with Iran limiting the flow by 75 to 80 percent last month.

Darbandikhan dam is located 65 km southeast of Sulaymaniyah and is constructed on the Sirwan river, which springs from the Zagros Mountains in Iran and ends in the Tigris river, southeast of Baghdad. The dam has a capacity to contain three million cubic metres and is used for irrigation, flood control, hydroelectric power production and recreation.

The low water level is primarily due to the sixteen dams Iran has constructed on Sirwan, with the biggest being Daryan Dam in Kermanshah province, completed in 2018 and located 28 km from the Iraqi border.

A research paper conducted by the Save the Tigris campaign in 2016 highlighted the potential threats that Daryan, which can contain 340 million cubic metres of water, will pose to the region and to Iraq as a whole.

The Iranian government says the purpose of these dams is to produce hydroelectric power and aid irrigation in the country’s southwest.

Last year, Iran's Water Resources Management Company announced its intention to construct 109 new dams under a plan that extends through to the year 2021.

But what is more concerning for Kurdish officials in the region is the 47-km-long Nawsud water tunnel associated with the dam, whose main purpose is to divert the water from the river to some Iranian cities.

“Nawsud will have a huge impact on Halabja province. We will be losing 100 percent of drinking water and it will also create a big obstacle for agriculture and fishing resources,” the deputy governor of Halabja, Kawa Ali, told MEE.

He added that cutting off the water supply is going to create political and social issues as residents of the Iraqi city “will lose trust in Iran, which they saw as a saviour during the chemical attack on the city in 1988” by former dictator Saddam Hussein’s regime.

Nawsud, located just 10 km west of Daryan Dam, diverts the Sirwan river to Kermanshah, Zahaw, and Qasr-e Shirin in Iran. Its natural pathway is through Darbandikhan and on into the Tigris river in Iraq.

“On 13 August, Iran started operating Nawsud, which has the capacity to completely redirect the river in the drought seasons,” said Khan.


A file photo shows a view of Little Zab river when it reached its highest water levels following heavy rains in the region on 2 April 2019


“No international law permits the diversion of natural resources between countries.”

Iran’s strategy towards cutting off water has the potential to change the ecosystem of the whole region, warned Rozhan Faraidoon, manager of the Earth Network, a nongovernmental organisation based in Sulaymaniyah.

“Biodiversity in the region will be disastrously damaged and wildlife is going to perish eventually”, Faraidoon said.

“If this strategy continues another problem would arise; a fresh campaign to dig wells would restart by locals, which would ultimately affect the ecosystem.”


Expected damages


On the banks of Sirwan river, residents of Zhalanaw, a village four kilometres south of Darbandikhan, started small tourist projects and an amusement park this year.

One of the residents is Salah Dara, who has spent $20,000 on his project but now fears his investment will be of no use should the Iranian government continue blocking the river.

“If the Sirwan river decreases due to Iran’s restrictions, my whole investment is going to waste as tourists will be reluctant to come here”, Dara said.

He added that he and his fellow villagers are fairly dependent on the river for growing rice, which needs a lot of water until it’s fully produced.

Little Zab also originates from Iran’s Zagros Mountains and runs through Dukan, a town 70km from Sulaymaniyah, and then joins the Tigris.

The Dukan dam, containing four billion cubic metres, is also built on the river whose flow has completely been cut, Kurdish news agency Rudaw reported.

“Nearly 100,000 people are dependent on the river, so a large number of farmers will bear the brunt of the impact,” Akram Ahmed, director of dams and water reserves in the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG), told MEE.

The official added that Qalat Daza and Raniya, the two biggest towns in Sulaymaniyah, are going to be affected in terms of drinking water and the loss of a large quantity of fish resources.

According to Rudaw, 750 acres of farmland in Sulaymaniyah’s Pishdar region, along with 400 fishing projects, face an imminent threat should the decrease of flow persist.

To make matters worse, Iran has suggested to Halabja officials that they are willing to sell electricity to the province, which it produces from the Sirwan river after its diversion to its own cities.

“In return for cutting off the river, Iranian government, through its Kermanshah governorate, has offered to sell us electricity at a lower price but we have not accepted as it’s not in our authority to agree to such a deal,” said Ali.


A decades-old issue


The KRG and Iraqi governments have both issued statements calling on Iran to stop blocking the water flow, an act that is “contrary to all international norms and laws and the water from the shared rivers is the property of the people of Iraq and Iran”.

The KRG has also tried to reach out to the Iranian government through its consulate in Erbil.

“We’ve summoned Iran’s general consul in Erbil through the Ministry of Agriculture and Water Resources to complain about the issue and are awaiting Tehran's response,” said Ahmed.

However, these kinds of actions will likely be to no avail as Iran is “very determined on operating its long-awaited projects and KRG officials have failed to realise the magnitude of the issue for more than two decades,” explained Faraidoon.

She also said that her organisation, along with other international NGOs, protested Iran’s action over the previous years as natural resources should be “shared and there has to be an understanding between countries to distribute them”. But when it comes to this issue, she said, Iran has repeatedly “disregarded international laws”.

Newsletter

Related Articles

Arab Press
0:00
0:00
Close
16 Billion Login Credentials Leaked in Unprecedented Cybersecurity Breach
Senate hearing on who was 'really running' Biden White House kicks off
G7 Leaders Fail to Reach Consensus on Key Global Issues
Mass exodus in Tehran as millions try to flee following Trump’s evacuation order
Iranian Military Officers Reportedly Seek Contact with Reza Pahlavi, Signal Intent to Defect
China's Iranian Oil Imports Face Disruption Amid Escalating Middle East Tensions
Trump Demands Iran's Unconditional Surrender Amid Escalating Conflict
Israeli Airstrike Targets Iranian State TV in Central Tehran
President Trump is leaving the G7 summit early and has ordered the National Security Council to the Situation Room
Netanyahu Signals Potential Regime Change in Iran
Analysts Warn Iran May Resort to Unconventional Warfare
Iranian Regime Faces Existential Threat Amid Conflict
Energy Infrastructure Becomes War Zone in Middle East
Iran Conducts Ballistic Missile Launches Amid Heightened Tensions with Israel
Iran Signals Openness to Nuclear Negotiations Amid Ongoing Regional Tensions
Shock Within Iran’s Leadership: Khamenei’s Failed Plan to Launch 1,000 Missiles Against Israel
UK Deploys Jets to Middle East Amid Rising Tensions
Exiled Iranian Prince Reza Pahlavi Urges Overthrow of Khamenei Regime
Wreck of $17 Billion San José Galleon Identified Off Colombia After 300 Years
Iran Launches Extensive Missile Attack on Israel Following Israeli Strikes on Nuclear Sites
Israel Issues Ultimatum to Iran Over Potential Retaliation and Nuclear Facilities
Coinbase CEO Warns Bitcoin Could Supplant US Dollar Amid Mounting National Debt
Trump to Iran: Make a Deal — Sign or Die
Operation "Like a Lion": Israel Strikes Iran in Unprecedented Offensive
Israel Launches 'Operation Rising Lion' Targeting Iranian Nuclear and Military Sites
Israeli Forces Intercept Gaza-Bound Aid Vessel Carrying Greta Thunberg
IMF Warns of Severe Global Trade War Impacts on Emerging Markets
Syria to Reconnect to Global Economy After 14 Years of Isolation
Saudi Arabia Faces Uncertainty Over Succession After Mohammed bin Salman
Israel Confirms Arming Gaza Clan to Counter Hamas Influence
Majority of French Voters View Macron's Presidency as a Failure
U.S. Reduces Military Presence in Syria
Trump Demands Iran End All Uranium Enrichment in Nuclear Talks
Iran Warns Europe Against Politicizing UN Nuclear Report
Businessman Mauled by Lion at Luxury Namibian Lodge
Paris Saint-Germain's Greatest Triumph Is Football’s Lowest Point
OPEC+ Agrees to Increase Oil Output for Third Consecutive Month
Turkey Detains Istanbul Officials Amid Anti-Corruption Crackdown
Meta and Anduril Collaborate on AI-Driven Military Augmented Reality Systems
EU Central Bank Pushes to Replace US Dollar with Euro as World’s Main Currency
European and Arab Ministers Convene in Madrid to Address Gaza Conflict
Head of Gaza Aid Group Resigns Amid Humanitarian Concerns
U.S. Health Secretary Ends Select COVID-19 Vaccine Recommendations
Trump Warns Putin Is 'Playing with Fire' Amid Escalating Ukraine Conflict
India and Pakistan Engage Trump-Linked Lobbyists to Influence U.S. Policy
U.S. Halts New Student Visa Interviews Amid Enhanced Security Measures
Trump Administration Cancels $100 Million in Federal Contracts with Harvard
SpaceX Starship Test Flight Ends in Failure, Mars Mission Timeline Uncertain
King Charles Affirms Canadian Sovereignty Amid U.S. Statehood Pressure
Iranian Revolutionary Guard Founder Warns Against Trusting Regime in Nuclear Talks
×