This town was submerged for 36 years due to the construction of a dam. Due to the lowering of the water level, it has suddenly reappeared.
The remains of the people of Guiri Qasrouka, in Iraqi Kurdistan, who were submerged under the waters of a dam 36 years ago, have suddenly reappeared due to the drop in the water level, caused by the drought.
The dam, located two kilometers north of the city of Dohuk, was built starting in 1985 and forced the residents of Guiri Qasruka to leave the town. Since then, it was under water, which is used to irrigate agricultural land in the region.
But “due to the drought” the water level dropped seven meters in September, releasing the remains of the town, explains Farhad Taher, responsible for the dam.
“All the water in the dam comes from rain, which has been very scarce this year,” he said. “Three times in the past, in 1992, 1999 and 2009, Guiri Qasruka’s remains reappeared when the water level dropped sharply.
“This phenomenon is certainly related to climate change,” added Taher.
Iraq is one of the countries most vulnerable to climate change. And the north of the country – from the autonomous region of Kurdistan to the Nineveh Plain – suffers a drought that is hitting the inhabitants and the agricultural sector hard.
Now Guiri Qasruka’s remains can be visited on dry land, including a house whose stone walls still stand. Before being submerged, the village had been home to some 50 Kurdish families from the Doski tribe since the 1970s. (I)
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