Official: Recent dust storm originated in Iraq, southern Turkey

Iran's Natural Resources and Watershed Management Organization vehemently rejects Turkey’s claim that part of Iran's dust storms originated in sub-Saharan Africa.

An advisor to the organization said daily surveys using satellite images from MADIS (a meteorological observational database and data delivery system) show the source of the dust that was hanging over Iran on April 7 was from a dust center west of the Iraqi city of Mosul and from southern Turkey on its border with Iraq.

Reza Bayani said Iran’s Natural Resources and Watershed Management Organization has recorded the images. He added that images received from MADIS show the dust hotspot that severely affects Iran was between the Tigris and the Euphrates.

The advisor to Natural Resources and Watershed Management Organization noted that had the dust, as a micron particle, risen from sub-Saharan Africa, it would have precipitated before leaving the Middle East.

Bayani then spoke about the dust centers in Iraq that affect Iran, saying they are located in the neighboring country’s al-Wasit region as well as west of Basra and Mosul. According to this advisor to, the Syrian province of Deir el-Zour, which borders Iraq, is also a dust center which affects Iran.

A thick layer of dust blanketed the sky in Tehran on Monday and many other Iranian provinces, forcing the closure of schools, universities, and public offices. The air quality levels also plunged alarmingly in Tehran and other major cities.

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