Syria grapples with intense drought
(MENAFN) In the mountainous town of Al-Marah, situated in Syria's Qalamoun region north of Damascus, the cherished Damask rose—renowned for its deep cultural and historical significance—is enduring one of its toughest seasons in recent history.
This rose, a long-standing emblem of Syria’s botanical and cultural identity, has flourished for generations in the harsh terrain. Once a vital economic asset and a point of national pride, the rose is now under severe threat due to increasingly unpredictable and extreme weather conditions.
“This year has been one of the worst,” said Mohammad Jamal Abbas, a farmer from the region also known locally as Abu Qusai. “Rainfall was only about 20 millimeters, around 25 percent of the average. We used to get 125 or 150 millimeters. Add to that a wave of heat, then another of severe cold. All of it affected production.”
According to reports, Abbas explained that they began watering the rose bushes not for harvesting purposes, but simply to prevent them from dying off completely. Their focus shifted from cultivating for production to basic plant survival.
Syria is currently grappling with an intense drought, described by experts as potentially the worst the country has faced in over three decades. This prolonged dry spell has drastically reduced wheat yields and has intensified water shortages. Humanitarian organizations have warned that if the crisis continues, nearly 60 percent of Syria’s population could face severe food insecurity.
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