In recent months, an unusually high number of sandstorms has engulfed parts of Iraq, Iran, Syria, Kuwait, and Saudi Arabia. The ongoing series of storms has sent thousands to hospitals with breathing problems, and caused the closure of airports, schools, and government offices. Officials and experts are blaming the growing frequency and intensity of sandstorms in the region on the mismanagement of agricultural areas, an ongoing drought, and the effects of climate change.
Photos: Sandstorms Sweep Across Parts of the Middle East
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![A young child walks in a field near a herd of sheep under a very orange sky.]()
Read moreA young child near a field where Bedouin shepherds walk alongside their sheep in the al-Henniyah area outside of Najaf, Iraq, on May 23, 2022, as a sandstorm sweeps the country. #
Qassem Al-Kaabi / AFP / Getty -
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![Thick dust blows across the tall buildings of Kuwait City.]()
Read moreKuwait City is engulfed by a sandstorm on May 23. #
Jaber Abdulkhaleg / Anadolu Agency / Getty -
![A man walks along a pedestrian bridge as dust in the air obscures the bridge and makes the sky orange.]()
Read moreA man walks along a pedestrian bridge over the Euphrates River in the city of Nasiriyah, in Iraq's southern Dhi Qar province, on May 16, during a heavy dust storm. #
Asaad Niazi / AFP / Getty -
![A woman looks at her phone as she walks in a severe dust storm. The whole scene is orange.]()
Read moreA woman looks at her phone as she walks in a severe dust storm in Kuwait City on May 23. #
Yasser Al-Zayyat / AFP / Getty -
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![A young man dives into a river during a sandstorm.]()
Read moreA young man dives into the Shatt al-Arab River during a sandstorm in Iraq's southern city of Basra on May 16. #
Hussein Faleh / AFP / Getty -
![A child sweeps sand from a courtyard during a sandstorm.]()
Read moreA child sweeps during a sandstorm at the Imam Ali Shrine in Najaf on May 23. #
Alaa Al-Marjani / Reuters -
![A Ferris wheel is barely visible through a thick haze of dust.]()
Read moreA Ferris wheel is barely visible through a thick haze of dust in Najaf on May 22. #
Karar Essa / Anadolu Agency / Getty -
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![Two older men in a hospital use oxygen masks.]()
Read morePeople with breathing problems are treated at a hospital during a sandstorm in Baghdad, Iraq, on May 16. #
Hadi Mizban / AP -
![A huge rolling cloud of dust billows over a populated area.]()
Read moreAn aerial view of a massive dust storm advancing into Kuwait City on May 23 #
Yasser Al-Zayyat / AFP / Getty -
![An approaching cloud of dust darkens the sky above a college campus.]()
Read moreAnother view of the dust storm advancing into Kuwait City, seen above the Kuwait University campus on May 23 #
Yasser Al-Zayyat / AFP / Getty -
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![Two men navigate a small boat in a river during a sandstorm.]()
Read moreFishermen navigate on the Shatt al-Arab River during a sandstorm in Basra on May 23. #
Nabil al-Jurani / AP -
![A dusty sky above a mosque near a roundabout]()
Read moreDust fills the sky during a sandstorm in Baghdad on May 23. #
Thaier Al-Sudani / Reuters -
![People walk in an open area in a city in Iraq during a sandstorm. The sky is orange.]()
Read moreA view of residents outside during a sandstorm in Najaf on May 23 #
Alaa Al-Marjani / Reuters -
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![A bridge vanishes into thick dust during a sandstorm.]()
Read moreA bridge vanishes into the dust in Najaf on May 22. #
Karar Essa / Anadolu Agency / Getty -
![A shepherd, his dog, and a flock of sheep walk under an orange sky.]()
Read moreBedouin shepherds walk alongside their grazing flock outside of Najaf on May 23. #
Qassem Al-Kaabi / AFP / Getty -
![A view looking out of an ornate door, looking toward an orange, dusty street scene outside.]()
Read moreA sandstorm in Baghdad is visible through the open door of a structure, on May 23. #
Thaier Al-Sudani / Reuters -
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