Working to Save the Iraqi Marshes
Azzam Alwash is working to save the Mesopotamian marshes. (Photo: natureiraq.org)
After the US-led invasion of Iraq and the toppling of Saddam Hussein, there were many stories of Iraqis around the globe wanting to go back home to help rebuild their country. One of them was Azzam Alwash.
He left Iraq in 1978 and settled in the United States. In 2003, Alwash went back. He wanted to restore the Mesopotamian Marshes, a formerly rich wetland habitat in southern Iraq about the size of Connecticut.
Alwash grew up near the marshes and used to accompany his father, a government water engineer, on trips there. In the 1990s, Saddam had the wetlands drained, in retaliation for a rebellion in the south. When he read about it, Alwash was stunned.
He says it was like draining the Florida Everglades except that the Iraqi marshes are twice as big.
The World is an independent newsroom. We’re not funded by billionaires; instead, we rely on readers and listeners like you. As a listener, you’re a crucial part of our team and our global community. Your support is vital to running our nonprofit newsroom, and we can’t do this work without you. Will you support The World with a gift today? Donations made between now and Dec. 31 will be matched 1:1. Thanks for investing in our work!