Iraq's Ancient Treasures Sand-blasted by Climate Change

This picture taken on March 31, 2023 shows a view of the masonry of an old structure at the Umm al-Aqarib archaeological site, frequently buried by sandstorms due to desertification, in the district of al-Rifai in Iraq's southern Dhi Qar province. (Photo by Asaad NIAZI / AFP)
This picture taken on March 31, 2023 shows a view of the masonry of an old structure at the Umm al-Aqarib archaeological site, frequently buried by sandstorms due to desertification, in the district of al-Rifai in Iraq's southern Dhi Qar province. (Photo by Asaad NIAZI / AFP)
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Iraq's Ancient Treasures Sand-blasted by Climate Change

This picture taken on March 31, 2023 shows a view of the masonry of an old structure at the Umm al-Aqarib archaeological site, frequently buried by sandstorms due to desertification, in the district of al-Rifai in Iraq's southern Dhi Qar province. (Photo by Asaad NIAZI / AFP)
This picture taken on March 31, 2023 shows a view of the masonry of an old structure at the Umm al-Aqarib archaeological site, frequently buried by sandstorms due to desertification, in the district of al-Rifai in Iraq's southern Dhi Qar province. (Photo by Asaad NIAZI / AFP)

Iraqi archaeological marvels that have survived millennia and the ravages of war now face a modern threat: being blasted and slowly buried by sandstorms linked to climate change, AFP reported.

Ancient Babylonian treasures, painstakingly unearthed, are slowly disappearing again under wind-blown sand in a land parched by rising heat and prolonged droughts.

Iraq, one of the countries worst-hit by climate change, endured a dozen major sandstorms last year that turned the sky orange, brought daily life to a halt and left its people gasping for air.

When the storms clear, layers of fine sand cover everything -- including the Sumerian ruins of Umm al-Aqarib, "the Mother of Scorpions", in the southern desert province of Dhi Qar.

Sandstorms have slowly begun to reverse years of work there to unearth the temples' terracotta facades and many priceless artifacts, said archaeologist Aqeel al-Mansrawi.

Archaeologists in Iraq have always had to shovel sand, but now the volumes are growing.

After a decade of worsening storms, sand at Umm al-Aqarib now "covers a good part of the site", that dates back to around 2350 BC and spans more than five square kilometers, he said.

In the past, the biggest threat was looting of antiquities at the ruins, where pottery fragments and clay tablets bearing ancient cuneiform script have been discovered.

Now the changing weather and its impact on the land, especially creeping desertification, spell an additional threat to ancient sites all across southern Iraq, said Mansrawi.

"In the next 10 years," he said, "it is estimated that sand could have covered 80 to 90 percent of the archaeological sites."

"The sandstorms became more frequent, the wind became dustier and the temperatures increase," said Jaafar al-Jotheri, professor of archaeology at Iraq's Al Qadisiyah University.

"The soil has become more fragile and fragmented because of the lack of vegetation and roots," he explained.

As more farmers flee the countryside, "their land is left behind and abandoned and its soil becomes more exposed to the wind".

Winds pick up "more sediment fragments that reach the archaeological sites", Jotheri said, adding that the "sand and silt cause physical weathering and disintegration of buildings".



Volcano in Philippines Spews Ash Over a Mile into the Sky 

Kanlaon is one of 24 active volcanoes in the Philippines. (AFP)
Kanlaon is one of 24 active volcanoes in the Philippines. (AFP)
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Volcano in Philippines Spews Ash Over a Mile into the Sky 

Kanlaon is one of 24 active volcanoes in the Philippines. (AFP)
Kanlaon is one of 24 active volcanoes in the Philippines. (AFP)

A volcano in the central Philippines erupted early Tuesday morning, sending a massive grey plume of ash up about three kilometers (1.8 miles) into the sky and launching ballistic projectiles.

Kanlaon Volcano, one of 24 active volcanoes in the Southeast Asian nation, has had several eruptions in the past century -- the most recent of which happened last month.

A level three alert -- out of a scale of five -- put in place during an eruption in December remained unchanged Tuesday, as officials highlighted an existing six-kilometer (four-mile) evacuation radius.

"A moderately explosive eruption occurred at the summit crater of Kanlaon Volcano at 2:55 am today (1855 GMT Monday)," the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology said in a statement, adding that it lasted five minutes.

"The eruption generated a greyish voluminous plume that rose approximately 3 kilometers above the vent before drifting to the general west," it said.

"Large ballistic fragments were also observed to have been thrown around the crater within a few hundred meters and caused burning of vegetation near the volcano summit."

Stating the continued level three alert, the agency warned there were "increased chances of short-lived moderately explosive eruptions that could generate life-threatening volcanic hazards."

In August 1996, Kanlaon Volcano erupted, sending a spray of heated rocks that killed three hikers who were near the summit at the time.

The Philippines is on the seismically active region of the Pacific known as the "Ring of Fire," where more than half the world's volcanoes are located.

The most powerful volcanic explosion in the Philippines in recent years was the 1991 eruption of Pinatubo, about 100 kilometers (62 miles) from Manila, which killed more than 800 people.