Ahvaz residents take their satirical war against dust storm to social networks

Residents of Ahvaz, the provincial capital of Khuzestan near the border with Iraq, are reeling after the southwestern city was walloped by a dust storm that prompted officials to order schools and government offices closed.

In a bid to air their grievances and draw the attention of officials in the capital to their plight, they have resorted to satire on social networking sites.

“Eat your heart out, we have dust here in the air, but you don’t!” the caption of a photo featuring a man wearing a chemical mask said.

“We are dying,” a sentence on a coat of dust enveloping the trunk of a sedan said. “We are still alive,” read another.

“Good news for the residents of Khuzestan. In light of the fact that the recent dust storm will exterminate the residents of Khuzestan, there are plans to replace in six months the image of Asiatic Cheetah [an endangered species] that appears on the jersey of the national soccer team with the image of the last human survivor in the province.” It was signed the society to support the endangered species.

And a new menu of a restaurant in the city featured all manner of dust items including clay sauce, mud soup, etc.