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May 6, 2022

5,000 Hospitalized in Iraq as Another Severe Dust Storm Strikes 
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In Iraq, at least one person died and more than 5,000 were hospitalized
with respiratory ailments Thursday as a massive dust storm blanketed
much of the country. Six of Iraq's 18 provinces suffered the storm's
effects, including the capital Baghdad, where authorities urged everyone
to stay indoors - especially those with breathing difficulties.

Ahmad Thaer: "This dust makes the situation worse, because we cannot
inhale clean air with this dust storm. There could have been better
solutions for the climate to become balanced. Green belts could have
been planted, and we could adhere to international climate treaties.
This continuously happens, and every time people die because of it."

It's the seventh severe dust storm to hit Iraq in just the last month.
In March, the International Monetary Fund released a report finding
temperatures in the Middle East and Central Asia have already risen 1.5
degrees Celsius above preindustrial levels, triggering droughts and
causing over 2,600 deaths a year.


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