Water Crisis in Iraq

Basra’s primary water sources are the Shatt al-Arab river and its freshwater canals. But multiple government failures since the 1980s, including poor management of upstream water sources, inadequate regulation of pollution and sewage, and chronic neglect and mismanagement of water infrastructure, have caused the quality of these waterways to deteriorate. The situation culminated in an acute water crisis that sent at least 118,000 people to hospital in 2018 and led to violent protests.