Fresh Water Conflict in Middle East Essay

However in order to secure their supply they must engage in peaceful negotiations as violence would only jeapordise their share of the supply. Thus the potential for water conflict is there as tensions continue to increase between upstream and downstream nations, and perhaps overtime as the downstream nations share of the supply is further squeezed, these tensions are likely to result in conflict.

The lust for territory seems to be the real source of conflict, and until one group is satisfied, the appearance of religious conflict will exist in the Middle East. It seems as if the real truth needs to be portrayed to the rest of the world about the true reason for the Arab-Israeli conflict, which is geography and ultimately water. The lack of water stems from the Great Syrian Rift Zone, and causes damage to Israeli land which ultimately decreases the amount of water that flows into the Red Sea. This lack of water causes Israel and other surrounding countries (Jordan, Lebanon, and the Occupied Territories) to only have one source of surface water, which is from Lake Kinnaret, or the Sea of Galilee that flows into the Jordan River.

By 1969, the Israelis had completed the National Water Carrier, a pipeline project that pumps water from the Sea of Galilee south and west and currently supplies one-quarter of the country with water. The Arab nations have repeatedly called Israeli water harvesting practices the surest sign of "Zionist imperialism."1 Today, this language is more muted, but its undertones pervade the region's political dialogue. The past is never forgotten in the Middle East, and an understanding of hydro-politics among the Jordan riparians requires a keen awareness of this fact.

Water is all around us. This substance is of high importance to every living thing which is on planet earth. As much as we consider water to be life and the most important substance, still we don’t seem to appreciate it very much, as it is being wasted in such great amounts. Everyone believes that water will always be around but not taking into account that the majority of the water on planet earth are not for human consumption. Human beings can only survive on consuming fresh water. The percentage of

The two most important resources in this region are oil and water. The huge oil “deposits there and in the neighboring countries around the Persian Gulf (the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, and Bahrain) established these countries as some of the richest in the world” (Document F). Nevertheless, the countries who do not have as much access to oil are weak economically. Oil is the biggest export in the Middle East, and in a way, the amount of oil a country has determines how wealthy that country will be. Another component of oil is that countries and ethnic groups are disputing for the control of prices of this economic resource. It has gone to the far extent of foreign countries attempting to control the oil price and also the use of weapons for this (Document E). In addition, it is impossible for each country to have equal access to water due to the unbalanced distribution of these essential resources. As a result of this, these countries are fighting for as much control of water sources they can get. Radically, there are many countries in the Middle East that are striving to obtain as many natural resources to strengthen their economy and lifestyle, and it seems most obvious that the scarcity of these resources is a significant problem in the region

“The problem is, simply put, a dispute over real estate” (Gelvin 3). This conflict has resulted in major wars during the period of time following World War II. The 1948-1949 Arab Israeli war began when Egypt, Syria, Iraq, and Lebanon invaded Palestine. The second war that occurred, was the 1956 Suez Canal War, at the end of this war Israel agreed to withdraw from the Sinai Peninsula and the Gaza strip

It all started to change when Turkey started grasping over water resources in the twentieth century. Since Turkey control approximately 80-90% of the rivers’ water flow, they constructed enormous amount of dams to suppress the water at the riverhead from their side. And our neighbor Iran follow Turkey’s lead in constructing dams upstream. As of 2001, there were 32 dams upstream with another 21 were planned, that was not the only reason so far. In 1991, Marsh Arab rebel against the government and contribute in the uprising against the bygone regime, the upraising failed and now the government is coming after those rebellions for punishment. The regime used all available resources and built canals, dams and dykes to sewer these antique marshes and discipline the Marsh Arabs for rebellion’s support. The bygone government did not bother to conceal the drainage project, probably due to the enormous size of the project, which was futile to hide. Instead, exploitation of oil reserves and wash away the salty, over-irrigated farmland was their alleged excuse to execute their wicked plan. The green, lush fields of the Marshlands turned into brown deserts because of the drainage project.

The land of Israel/Palestine sits in an important geographic region in the middle-east called “the bottleneck.” Valuable trade routes between major civilizations created a lot of tension in the bottleneck, making this region unstable, yet

In the Middle East, water plays an imperative role in improving the quality of life and socioeconomic development (Priscoli, 1999). Water is a valuable resource all over the Middle East. Water is not only essential for life, but also for the progress of civilization in the Middle East (Center for South Asian and Middle Eastern Studies, 2017). Iran (former name Persia until 1935), one of the oldest cradles of civilization in the world, has made tremendous efforts into the past few thousand years to meet a sustainable water resource management. Water delivery, water balance, water storage, water quality, water protection, water saving, waste water controlling, hazard mitigation and adaptation are among the most important challenges which Iranians

According to the article “Obstacles to Arab-Israeli peace: Water” by Martin Asser, the Six-Day War was possibly started by a conflict over water. Israel seized the West Bank water aquifer and the Sea of Galilee, which provides Israel with around 60% of its fresh water. The wall allows the Israeli to gain possession of crucial areas for the citizens of Palestine, which have a lot of water. And the Palestinians say that they can’t use their own water supply and are forced to unnecessarily buy water from Israel. Israel bestows upon its citizens in Palestine 3 to 5 times more water than the Palestinians that are natives to the land. (Asser According to the article stated above the Arabs and the Israeli need to work together to get the most out of the little water they have. This conflict has been very drawn out and hard on the land as well as the citizens, so the two groups need to find a solution and stop fighting because the resources like water may be exhausted. Water is necessary for life and if security is meant to preserve life, then why is it possibly making live

Water in Palestine is considered as one of the most questionable and important Issues in Israeli-Palestinian conflict. The water issue remains one of the most issues that need to be studied and solved between Palestinian and Israeli. Although, the agreements that signed between Palestinian

The ambition of the often autocratic leaders to acquire more land, which may bring them access to oil, water or arable land. The problem according to Sørli et. al is “scarcity” and “abundance” (147). Water is scarce, and oil is in abundance, but the access to both is limited. According to our text, the new “water wars” have emerged as a major source of conflict, in addition to the “oil wars” (Anderson et. al, 226). Water is scarce in the Middle East, and will continue to dwindle as the population rises. Not every country has the same access to the water sources, which will naturally cause problems. For example, Israel has control of the Golan, and Egypt of the Nile, and Kuwait of the Persian Gulf. Oil is in abundance, but only to a limited number of countries in the Middle East causing great economic disparity between those who have, and those who do not. Kuwait, having access to the Persian Gulf, produces a large supply of oil to international players. Given its high value internationally, and its worth, oil is much sought after.

The scarcity, depletion and polluting of water in one of the world's driest regions, is a problem that has perplexed the nations of the Middle East for decades. The riparian states of the Jordan River Basin include Israel, Jordan, Syria and Lebanon. These states are in a constant struggle over securing water rights for their respective states. The conflict over water is also overshadowed by the Arab-Israeli issues and the subsequent territorial questions. While territory is often at the forefront of the issues, securing water has also become a contributing factor in the conflicts of the past, and will continue in the future. Choices of conflict or cooperation will have to be made, given the diminishing amounts of water available.

Water is the main source of life on the Earth. It is vital for normal existence and functioning of organisms. Earth is sometimes called “water planet.” But, in fact, the number of freshwater is limited. “Only about 2 percent of the planet's water is fresh.” (How much water is there on Earth?) This water is not enough even to meet daily needs of mankind. According to World Health Organization, “a lack of water to meet daily needs is a reality today for one in three people around the world.” (2009) In the Middle East the situation is especially hard. This region is thought to be one of the droughtiest places in the world, most of it’s territory is deserted. Freshwater accounts to 1 percent of the world’s supplies, while the population comes

Since the early 20th Century, Israelis and Palestinians have been fighting over the land between the Jordan River and the Mediterranean Sea. With the assumption that Palestine is a state to facilitate discussion, this report sketches out the most significant elements of the conflict on the three levels defined by Kenneth Waltz, and applies the Realist theory of international relations (IR) to the “Two-State” solution.