SULAIMANI (ESTA) — A dust storm blanketed Iraq again on Tuesday, sending people to hospital with breathing difficulties and leading airports to suspend flights.
The latest weather even cast an orange hue over Baghdad, where it severely restricted visibility and coated buildings and cars in dust.
“People have been hospitalized with breathing difficulties, but most cases are minor,” AFP quoted health ministry spokesman Saif al-Badr as saying.
Dozens of flights were suspended in Baghdad and Najaf during the morning, before they resumed in the afternoon when conditions improved.
The dust storm followed a similar one that blew over the country late last week and left dozens hospitalized with respiratory problems.
Iraq is particularly vulnerable to climate change, having already witnessed record low rainfall and high temperatures in recent years.
