Rights group: Water level in Euphrates River falls by 5m

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) said the water level in the Euphrates River has dramatically decreased over the past few weeks, threatening the lives and livelihoods of more than three million Syrians who depend on the river for drinking water, electricity and irrigation.

SOHR said the river’s water level has decreased by five metres due to Turkey’s measures to block water resources and allow only 200 cubic metres per second of the river’s water to flow into Syria.

The rights watchdog said the Turkish actions contradict the agreement signed between Damascus and Ankara in 1987, where Turkey pledged that Syria would receive a minimum of 500 cubic metres per second.

The Euphrates is the longest river in Southwest Asia. It originates from Turkey and crosses the Syrian territories into Iraq where it meets with the Tigris, forming the Shatt Al-Arab.

In 1989 Syria agreed to release 58 per cent of the Euphrates waters it receives from Turkey to Iraq.

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