Iraqi farmer Sayyed Sattar knows he will soon have to let some of his buffalo go as he surveys the herd bathing in a dwindling pond close to the holy city of Najaf.<\/p>\n
As southern Iraq suffers through a punishing drought, desperate cattle breeders are having to sell off animals to keep others alive, AFP reported.<\/p>\n
Sattar, 52, has already seen some of his buffalo die of thirst.<\/p>\n
Now, in a bid to stop any others being lost, he is being forced to say goodbye to some of his prized beasts.<\/p>\n
“With the money, we will be able to buy water and hay for the rest of the herd,” he told AFP, his head covered with a traditional black and white keffiyeh scarf.<\/p>\n
Sattar is far from the only farmer hit by the drought.<\/p>\n
Local authorities estimate that some 30 percent of cattle across the south of the country have been lost during the drought, either dying from thirst or sold off for slaughter.<\/p>\n
That is a major blow for the estimated 475,000 families who make their livings from livestock across the south of the conflict-hit country.<\/p>\n
Search for water<\/strong> He has to travel ever greater distances with his flock to find water.<\/p>\n Around him, canals have run dry and the cracked earth, empty water pipes, and dead grass testify to how few options farmers now have.<\/p>\n To quench the thirst of their animals they have to pay, and the price of water has shot up, he said.<\/p>\n The lack of water is painful in an area that once formed part of the so-called “fertile crescent”.<\/p>\n Dubbed the “country of two rivers” due to the presence of the mighty Tigris and Euphrates, Iraq has seen its water supplies shrinking for years.<\/p>\n This year rainfall has been particularly scarce and reservoirs currently stand at only 10 percent full.<\/p>\n Beyond the natural causes there is also a human factor worsening the problem \u2014 the sharing of water resources on a regional level.<\/p>\n The agriculture ministry suspended the growing of rice, corn and other cereals that consume a lot of water.<\/p>\n ‘Exodus’<\/strong> But as farmers see the costs soar, the price that their cattle fetch is collapsing.<\/p>\n Animals that once could have gone for up to $5,000 a head are now selling for as little as $1,500, meaning that cashing in on a buffalo can only cover the herd for two months.<\/p>\n To try to make ends meet many farmers have had to resort to taking out loans at banks and going into debt.<\/p>\n Unable to pay off their bills, a group of farmers recently took to the streets in southern Iraq asking for delays in their payments.<\/p>\n “Never in its history has Iraq known such a catastrophe,” said Ahmed al-Issawi, head of the agricultural cooperative in Najaf.<\/p>\n “Our animals are forced to drink water where even mosquitos can’t survive.”<\/p>\n The drought has seen other problems increase \u2014 disease, worms and epidemics.<\/p>\n Animals “contaminate each other very quickly and die”, Issawi says.<\/p>\n The Mesopotamian Marshes, one of the biggest wetlands in the region, have long been seen as one of the jewels of southern Iraq.<\/p>\n But now they no longer help guarantee an income for those who live there, meaning people have already started to move away \u2014 and more look set to follow.<\/p>\n “There will be an exodus,” Issawi warned.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Iraqi farmer Sayyed Sattar knows he will soon have to let some of his buffalo go as he surveys the herd bathing in a dwindling pond close to the holy city of Najaf. As southern Iraq suffers through a punishing drought, desperate cattle breeders are having to sell off animals to keep others alive, AFP […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":2746,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[4],"tags":[901,902,188,900],"yoast_head":"\n
\nHerder Ali, 24, understands only too well the challenges being faced.<\/p>\n
\nTo help keep livestock watered, trucks are making the rounds in southern Iraq, offering to fill up the plastic tanks around cattle sheds for $20 (\u20ac17).<\/p>\n