Sandstorm in Iraq leaves thousands hospitalised

Correction — May 13, 2025

The last two paragraphs were substantially a copyright violation, and have been rephrased while retaining their meaning.

Sunday, April 20, 2025

On Monday, April 14, 2025, over 3,500 people in Iraq had been hospitalised with respiratory problems due to a severe sandstorm, the biggest of the year so far. It blanketed the skies with what was described as a "thick orange haze", reducing visibility to only hundreds of metres, and in some cases, even fewer.

The authorities closed airports in the Najaf and Basra provinces.

Conditions were expected to gradually improve on Tuesday, according to forecasts from local weather services.

The UN has identified Iraq as being among the five nations facing the greatest threats from climate change, which has allegedly contributed to recurring sandstorms, intense heat, and water scarcity in the country.

The last significantly severe sandstorm in Iraq was in 2022, leading to the death of one person and needing to treat over 5,000 for respiratory issues.

Sources

Alfie Tobutt, Yang Tian. Iraq sandstorm leaves many with breathing problems — BBC, April 15, 2025
Severe sandstorms engulf southern Iraq — Aljazeera, April 15, 2025
Lindsey Doermann. Dust Storm Sweeps Through Iraq — NASA Earth Observatory, April 14, 2025

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Note that some listed sources or external links may no longer be available online due to age.