In the arid regions of the Middle East, water is often said to be more valuable than oil. The evolution of the conflict with Iran includes, among other things, attacks on water infrastructure – a powerful, sensitive and dangerous means of warfare in a region where water is scarce.
The recent incidents in the Persian Gulf are indicative. Iranian authorities have blamed the US for a strike on a desalination plant on Qeshm Island, which reportedly left about 30 villages without water. Shortly afterwards, Bahrain announced that an Iranian drone had damaged a similar facility.
In a region where countries such as Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Qatar derive up to 90% of their drinking water from desalination, such attacks do not just affect infrastructure but directly threaten the daily lives of millions of people. These units, which are often connected to energy facilities, act as critical hubs: a power cut can mean a simultaneous power and water outage.
Desalination is a one-way street
The Gulf States have no permanent rivers and rely on scarce rainfall and limited underground aquifers. The rapid urbanization and population boom of recent decades has depleted these reserves, making desalination almost a one-way street, as described by the Middle East Council on Global Affairs.
Today, the region produces a huge proportion of the world’s desalinated water and supplies cities such as Dubai, Doha and Kuwait almost exclusively through this technology. This is a successful achievement, but it creates a deep structural vulnerability, as the water supply depends on large, concentrated and energy-intensive infrastructures.
Iran relies more than the rest of the Gulf countries on rivers and groundwater, but these have begun to deplete in recent years due to climate change and prolonged drought, forcing the country to expand — with more difficulty — desalination.
A years-old “taboo” was broken
For years, targeting desalination plants was considered an informal ‘taboo’. Attacking such facilities, like nuclear power plants, was seen as crossing a threshold with potentially catastrophic humanitarian consequences.
Recent events, however, suggest that this limit may be eroding. If water facilities become regular military targets, the effects will be immediate and far-reaching. Interruption of water supply, even for a limited period, can cause chain reactions: from
public health problems to social destabilization. In extremely hot conditions, such as those prevailing in the summer in the Gulf, the lack of water can turn into a matter of survival within hours, writes Al Jazeera.
Water as a weapon of war
This picture is not limited to the Middle East. Globally, in the last three years, water has increasingly emerged as a tool of conflict, according to data from the Pacific Institute. Water infrastructure is being targeted, access to water is being used as a means of pressure and, in some cases, water itself is being turned into a weapon.
The destruction of dams, flow restrictions and attacks on water networks are now recurring phenomena on different fronts, from Ukraine to Gaza and South Asia.
