(Washington Insider Magazine) -The cholera outbreak which originally started in Syria has crossed its borders and infected major middle eastern countries, including Iraq and Lebanon.
The outbreak poses a public health crisis in the region which has already faced a number of humanitarian crises.
This is not the first time that a cholera outbreak has been reported in the Middle East, with many experts surprised that Lebanon and Iraq weren’t affected sooner. Trying rivers in the region to be the cause of the outbreak.
Mainly the Euphrates River in Turkey, which flows from Turkey down through parts of western Asia including Iraq and Syria has started drying up and is now a hotbed for cholera bacteria. Vaccinations have been received as of 30th November, 2022.
Drought, flash floods, and a dramatic increase in temperature are largely to blame for the historically significant river reverting to a riverbed where cholera bacteria can easily multiply.
However, we can’t just blame the climate crisis. Turkey has reduced water flow from the Euphrates river to a quarter below what was agreed upon amongst the countries where the river flows from.
The low water levels are becoming a serious problem for countries who are further down the stream, especially as countries such as Iraq, which is largely desert lacks any valuable fresh water source.
Syria, a country ravaged by conflict, sits at the heart of the recent cholera outbreak. Hot temperatures have allowed cholera to develop more rapidly in local water reserves. While there have been vaccines dispersed, many remain concerned about a more widespread pandemic in lesser-developed areas of the country – especially in the event of a vaccine shortage.
The bacteria responsible for cholera is Vibrio Cholerae, which many locals have involuntarily ingested by drinking water from the Euphrates river. Consequently, they may experience side effects such as vomiting and diarrhea and death from dehydration.
So far, almost 40,000 cases and 100 fatalities have been reported in Syria and surrounding countries. However, it’s believed that the true number is a lot higher.
This is in large part because Syria’s main sewage treatment collapsed in the summer, meaning that there was no way to properly clean local water supplies.
The waterborne disease has now crossed borders with cases being reported in Lebanon this September. With the reduced water levels and soaring temperatures cases are expected to rise.