As Iran’s water crisis continues, Tehran’s dams are experiencing massive declines.
According to official government statistics, the volume of reservoirs in five of Tehran's dams has experienced a sharp decrease of 31 million cubic meters.
The semi-official ISNA news agency published a report on Monday attributing the decline to a combination of reduced rainfall in Tehran and the impact of climate change. As a result, the dams in the city are now holding considerably less water than in the previous year.
Out of the five dams under scrutiny, only Amir Kabir dam in Karaj, west of Tehran, stands as an exception, boasting a substantial increase in water volume. The reservoir at Amir Kabir dam currently holds 154 million cubic meters of water, representing a 28% growth compared to the previous year when it contained 125 million cubic meters.
However, the situation is markedly different for other dams in Tehran, as they continue to grapple with declining water levels.
Iran's water shortage problem has reached critical levels, prompting the Minister of Energy to pledge to address water tensions in some Iranian cities. Regrettably, despite this promise, reports indicate that water scarcity has spread to a vast majority of provinces, leaving only seven provinces unaffected.
In an alarming revelation, the Ministry of Energy disclosed that as many as 10,000 villages across Iran are experiencing a shortage of drinking water. Among the worst-hit areas is Kerman province, where 669 villages are facing severe water shortages.
A news website in Iran has claimed that authorities are encouraging the growth of the Afghan population with incentives such as subsidized energy and food.
In an unattributed commentary earlier this month, Aftab News in Tehran said millions of Afghan immigrants consume at least $5b of around $90 to 100 billion annual subsidies that the government is spending to keep fuel, other energy and food prices down. The website suggested that this is only one of the ways in which the authorities are encouraging Afghans to stay in Iran.
The article suggested that the Islamic Republic might be facilitating Afghan immigration as a remedy to the problem of population decline. “We should not start to import a big population that lacks national and religious [conformity with the Iranian population] under the pretext that the country’s population may decline within the next few decades,” it said.
Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei believes efforts to increase the country's population are among the most urgent duties and essential policies of the Islamic Republic as the main Shia government in the Muslim world.
Iran's Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei holding a baby
Aftab News is a website close to former President Hassan Rouhani and the moderate conservative Moderation and Development Party.
“It is not difficult to understand that the presence of foreign nationals is highly beneficial to some segments of the state who can use these immigrants to serve their political and ideological interests, [particularly] in areas where Iranians are less inclined to participate,” the commentary said.
Iranian authorities usually refer to Afghan immigrants and refugees as ‘foreign nationals’.
“This is a very vague statement, but it is probably suggesting that authorities are hoping that immigrants, Shiite Afghans in particular, will fight for the regime should there be a war as some of them, the Fatemiyoun brigade, fought for the Revolutionary Guards in Syria, because recruiting Iranians to fight in such wars in becoming more and more difficult,” a political analyst who asked not to be quoted by name told Iran International.
Thousands of Afghans fleeing the economic hardships under the Taliban enter Iran daily from official border points or illegally from other areas along the 900 km border to find work in Iran to support their families back home or to continue their journey towards Europe.
In April 2021 Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian said one million more Afghans had entered Iran since the Taliban took power in August the previous year, bringing the number of refugees and economic migrant to five million. According to the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR), Only 780,000 of Afghans residing in Iran are recognized as refugees. Most other Afghans are considered economic migrants who have been an important workforce in Iran.
Afghan immigrants in Iran
The article also claimed that the number of Afghans has uncharacteristically increased in several Iranian cities including Qom where it said Afghans have been given the right to legally purchase property. Qom in central Iran is home to Iran's largest religious seminaries where many foreign nationals including Shia Afghans study.
Allowing Afghans to buy property in Qom, it suggested, is proof that there is no resolve in related government agencies to control the Afghan immigration to Iran.
The article also alleged that lack of control at eastern borders of the country, issuing thousands of tourist visas every day when applicants do not intend to return to their home country, automatic renewal of tourist, pilgrimage and other types of visas, elimination or reduction of cash fines for illegal entry and stay, illegal immigrants’ easy access to various services including education and healthcare “indicate targeted planning.”
On Sunday, Iran initiated its annual air force drill, named Fadaeian Velyat-11, with 11 Iranian air force bases participating.
The drill comes as the US announced deployment of additional fighter planes to the region to deter any attempts by the Islamic Republic to seize commercial vessels in the Persian Gulf area.
More than 90 fighter planes, bombers, and drones are set to take part in the drill, named Devotees of the Supreme Leader-11), according to local media.
Air Force Chief Hamid Vahedi claimed the drill’s message is “friendship, peace, and regional security”. He said: "Sustainable security, improving and fostering regional ties, peaceful coexistence, and defending air borders are on the agenda."
Iran, facing long-running sanctions and arms embargoes, relies primarily on missiles and drones, rather than having a viable modern air force.
In response to previous Iranian attempts to seize commercial ships in the Strait of Hormuz and Gulf of Oman, the US is reinforcing its presence in the area. The Pentagon announced earlier that the USS Thomas Hudner, a destroyer, along with a number of F-35 fighter jets, will be deployed to enhance security in the region.
Tensions have escalated due to recent incidents involving Iranian actions towards commercial vessels. Last month, Iran attempted to seize two oil tankers, the Marshall Islands-flagged TRF Moss, and the Bahamian-flagged Richmond Voyager, with one of the ships coming under fire.
The US Navy has accused Iran of seizing at least five commercial vessels over the past two years and harassing several others.
Iran denies these allegations, claiming that the seizures occurred after the vessels collided with local ships and polluted the waterway.
Dust storms and air pollution hit 14 Iranian provinces, forcing office and school closures in Markazi province.
The Meteorological Organization of Iran issued a warning for 14 provinces, cautioning about yellow weather conditions characterized by strong winds, rising dust, and declining air quality.
Sahar Tajbakhsh, the head of Iran's meteorological organization, expressed concern over the escalating sandstorms, attributing them to "the impact of climate change and powerful winds".
The situation has prompted authorities to advise respiratory patients, elderly individuals, children, and desert hikers in the affected provinces to avoid unnecessary travel.
In Markazi province, air pollution caused by dust has persisted for several days. The emergency working group of Qom province has also taken measures by reducing working hours due to worsening conditions.
While offices and schools in Tehran province remain open, environmental authorities have warned about the escalation of dust levels, reports state.
Desertification is considered a significant contributing factor to the problem. Approximately one million hectares of Iran's wetlands are transformed into fine dust centers each year, driven by the drying of wetlands.
Earlier, Iran's health ministry revealed that approximately half of the country’s population is currently facing hazardous dust storms, posing serious risks to people's health.
In a shocking revelation, an Australian-Iranian woman has exposed alarming harassment on Australian soil by a suspected regime agent.
The series of terrifying incidents took place in December, leaving the 28-year-old activist fearing for her safety and demanding recognition and protection from the Australian government.
The distressing ordeal began when Tina Kordrostami noticed a heavily tattooed man following her through Drummoyne on her way home to Dee Why. The situation escalated further when the man brazenly climbed into her car while she briefly stopped at a Sydney petrol station late at night.
Consequently, Kordrostami's father started receiving threats against her life, and she found herself under surveillance, with unidentified men taking photographs of her during rallies and public events.
In response to such alarming reports, several Australian-Iranians have broken their silence, highlighting how the Iranian regime monitors their activities in Australia. This has raised concerns among the community, who are now demanding protection from the Australian government.
Senator Chandler, who led a Senate inquiry into human rights abuses late last year, expressed her concern over the harassment of Australian citizens and the lack of action taken by relevant authorities.
“There are individuals in the community that are concerned they're being targeted. And they're reporting that to the relevant authorities, but they're worried those concerns aren't being taken seriously,” Senator Chandler stated.
The Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) has conducted operations across a wide range of countries beyond the Middle East including the UK, where it targeted the Iran International staff and forced the offices to relocate to the US after British authorities failed to protect the team.
Secretary of State Antony Blinken reiterated Sunday that the US is pursuing de-escalation with Iran, but it remains unclear if Washington has made any offers to Tehran.
Speaking on CNN’s Fareed Zakaria GPS program, Blinken announced that “We’re now in a place where we’re not talking about a nuclear agreement. We are very clearly making it known to them that they need to take actions to de-escalate, not escalate, the tensions that exist in our relationship across a whole variety of fronts.”
Iranian officials and government media have yet to react to Blinken’s statement. Official and semi-official government media were silent on Monday but a ‘reformist’ website in Tehran, not directly controlled by the government, published the news about his remarks with a clear distortion.
Speaking about long negotiations in 2021 and 2022 that came to a deadlock last September, Blinken told CNN that “An agreement was on the table. Iran either couldn’t or wouldn’t say yes.” However, Etemad Online translated the sentence to, “Iran has not made a decision yet.”
Blinken did not explain what de-escalation means from the Biden administration viewpoint. Clearly, high levels of uranium enrichment and stockpiling fissile material for nuclear bombs is the most provocative policy Tehran currently pursues. But is the administration also telling the Islamic Republic they have to also de-escalate in their provocations in the region, such as attacks on US forces and open incitement of terror attacks on Israel?
A Ukrainian factory burning near Kyiv after a direct hit by an Iranian drone supplied to Russia. May 28, 2023
There is also the issue of Iran supplying kamikaze drones to Russia that the administration has said is one of its pre-conditions for resumption of full nuclear talks. So far, Iran has shown no inclination to de-escalate in any of these areas.
Blinken also did not say what the United States is promising Iran in return for de-escalatory steps. Certainly, Tehran would demand the lifting of at least some sanctions. Already, the Biden administration has not been rigorously enforcing existing oil export sanctions that has allowed Iran to increase its exports to as high as 1.5 million barrels a day. Before former President Donald Trump withdrew from the 2015 JCPOA nuclear agreement, Iran was shipping around two million barrels. One can argue that Iran has almost overcome the oil sanctions, although US banking sanctions are still deterring most banks in other countries from doing business with Iran.
But if we assume that de-escalation applies only to less enrichment or a cap of 60-percent uranium purity in exchange for lifting some critical sanctions, then that was Iran’s plan all along. In December 2020, the Iranian parliament passed legislation to enrich at higher levels to force the US to lift sanctions. In fact, the bill was called the ‘Strategic Action to Eliminate Sanctions and Defend Iranian Nation's Interests.’
That negotiating tactic was initiated a month earlier in November by parliament, when Joe Biden won the presidential election and Tehran was certain that his administration was determined to reverse Trump’s decision and revive the JCPOA.
Now, the administration just hopes for de-escalation while it knows that Iran will use every means of pressure to project power.
“We are continuing to work out, to develop, to flesh out every possible option for dealing with the problem if it asserts itself,” Blinken said.
Earlier this month Iran tried to seize to commercial vessels in the Persian Gulf and the US Navy intervened to prevent it. Immediately plans were put in motion to reinforce the US naval presence in the region, dispatching more warplanes and warships.
Iran will not confront the United States where a clear deterrent signal has been issued. It most probably will hit back elsewhere or use new tactics.
