Dozens hospitalised as Iraq gripped by dust storm
-
Wildfires push endangered Sumatran elephants to brink: Indonesian NGO
-
Pickle-flavoured tart? AI inspires Japan's convenience stores
-
Bank of Japan set to raise rates under pressure from inflation, US
-
EU chief hosts Canada's Carney in push to 'deepen' alliance
-
EU chief to unveil social media, gaming curbs for under-15s
-
Meta chief pushes back on AI slowdown calls
-
'Resident Evil' film brings video game's ethos to the big screen
-
US Fed to deliver rate decision with markets betting on hike
-
i-payout Expands U.S. Money Transmitter Licensing Footprint and Advances European EMI Strategy
-
Sanders, Bannon warn of AI dangers in rare US left-right alignment
-
US Senate crypto bill collapses amid partisan deadlock
-
Empty benches as schools reopen in Venezuela's quake-hit Guaira
-
OpenAI, Anthropic and Google are working to create an AI standards body
-
Tiny English village holds 'independence' vote over asylum seeker housing
-
Protesting shepherds, farmers clash with Romanian police
-
US Treasury chief says to meet Chinese counterpart at weekend
-
Foundation Lets Ledger Users Switch to Open Source Without Starting Over
-
BingX Evolves into a Multi-Asset Trading Platform, Connecting Users to Global Opportunities
-
EU to propose curbing social media, online games for under 15s
-
International Trading Institute Expands Professional Trader Development Beyond the Master’s in Trading
-
FX Junction Reaches 40,600 Members and 26 Million Trades
-
Lake Energy Secures $80 Million for U.S. Renewable Energy Expansion
-
'We unleashed the beast': the world's fears and hopes about AI
-
Stocks drop, oil climbs and Treasury yields hit 19-year high
-
Hospitality leaders ask Burnham to halve VAT amid rising costs
-
SkySail Strategies Outperforms Wall Street's 30-Year Risk Standard With Proprietary AI Inference Model
-
Worcestershire invited to nominate groups for 2027 King’s volunteer award
-
Just add fish: Scientists pursue more rice, less disease in Senegal paddies
-
Berlin's run-down public spaces at heart of election campaign
-
Belgium completes outer structure of offshore energy island
-
'Widow's Bay' and 'The Pitt' win big at Emmy Awards
-
China retail sales growth weakens further in August
-
Most markets drop as oil extends gains ahead of expected US rate hike
-
In Kashmir, lake weeds mix with traditional art
-
Sri Lanka's famed beach shack battles demolition
-
'Widow's Bay' and 'The Pitt' take key Emmy awards
-
Vserv targets ₹1,000 crore revenue by 2030 through AI expansion
-
Television's A-listers glitter on Emmys red carpet
-
India prohibits bank fees on UPI payments up to ₹2,000
-
Air India CEO summoned over alleged departure immigration lapse
-
Brazil's Amazon defender Raoni has cancer
-
HFCL expands planned fibre investment to ₹1,800 crore
-
Trump rejects AI slowdown concerns as UN urges coordinated controls
-
Kuwait schools restore classroom routines after remote learning
-
Higher wages draw migrant workers to Kashmir despite attacks
-
BIS flags debt and profitability risks in AI-driven market rally
-
Oil supply concerns and AI warnings weigh on global markets
-
Qatar Chamber and Maltese envoy consider business forum
-
'I am the hoax buster': Trump rejects AI danger warnings
-
Spanish PM denies being blackmailed by Morocco
Dozens hospitalised as Iraq gripped by dust storm
A dust storm that has swept through much of Iraq has left dozens of people in hospital with respiratory problems, a health ministry spokesman said Saturday.
The storm erupted in the north of the country on Thursday, prompting the cancellation of flights serving Arbil, capital of the autonomous Kurdistan region.
As the storm swept south, it shrouded Baghdad and cities as far south as Nasiriyah in a ghostly orange.
In the capital, buildings and vehicles were covered in ochre-coloured dust, AFP journalists reported.
The storm has caused "dozens of hospitalisations across Iraq due to respiratory problems", health ministry spokesman Saif al-Badr told AFP.
The director of Iraq's meteorological office, Amer al-Jabri, said that while dust storms were not uncommon in Iraq, they are becoming more frequent "due to drought, desertification and declining rainfall".
Iraq is particularly vulnerable to climate change, having already witnessed record low rainfall and high temperatures in recent years.
Experts have said these factors threaten social and economic disaster in the war-scarred country.
In November, the World Bank warned that Iraq could suffer a 20 percent drop in water resources by 2050 due to climate change.
A.Leibowitz--CPN