Türkiye is facing a severe drought that is impacting water resources, shrinking reservoirs and unprecedented shortages affecting daily life, agriculture, and industry.
Officials are calling for urgent, sustainable water management and emergency actions.
Türkiye is dealing with an ongoing nationwide drought as new analysis from the European Space Agency’s Sentinel-2 satellites shows.
Its findings show that soil moisture has dropped sharply nationwide this year also confirming that rivers, reservoirs, and farmlands are drying fast.
The Turkish State Meteorological Service (MGM) provides interactive drought maps that show how much rainfall has occurred across Türkiye compared to long-term norms.
These maps highlight short- and long-term drought trends by region, helping with water and agricultural planning.
Experts are calling for immediate action and for deliberate steps to be taken to prevent the situation from getting worse.
Professor Şenol Hakan Kutoğlu of Zonguldak Bülent Ecevit University points to both agricultural and urban solutions which include shifting to less water-demanding crops, planting drought-resistant species, installing green roofs, and introducing rainwater collection systems to capture rainfall.
Nationwide active storage has fallen to 42%, forcing major cities onto alert.
In Istanbul, dam levels are 11% lower than last year, leaving less than 120 days of drinking water. Officials are already considering rotating cuts and restrictions.
Türkiye's capital, Ankara, is even more severe: reservoirs are 19% full, but with only 8.5% usable, experts warn Ankara may face a crisis before Istanbul.
In Izmir, the Tahtalı Dam has dropped under 7%; supply cuts have tightened from every five days to every three, while some neighborhoods are already without regular water. In Bursa, the Nilüfer Dam has completely dried up, while Doğancı Dam holds just over a month’s supply.
Officials stress that demand management, fixing leaks, lowering pressure at night, and urging the public to save water can buy time, but without urgent adaptation, Türkiye may face its harshest urban water crisis in decades.
U.S. and Ukrainian negotiators have discussed an ambitious goal of reaching a peace agreement between Russia and Ukraine by March, though the timeline...
At least 31 killed, scores wounded in suicide attack on religious site in Islamabad....
Lebanese Army Commander Gen. Rodolphe Haykal met with senior U.S. officials in Washington, D.C., this week to discuss strengthening military and secur...
Storm Leonardo has swept across the Iberian Peninsula, causing widespread flooding, landslides and transport disruption in Portugal and Spain, leaving...
Escalating clashes in South Kivu’s highlands are sending a rising flow of wounded to Fizi’s small general hospital, where staff warn they are runn...
Across Iraq’s wheat belt, farmers are turning away from traditional river-fed irrigation as the Tigris and Euphrates shrink, replacing canals with wells, sprinklers and storage basins.
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian has urged the public to drastically reduce water consumption in the aftermath of an unprecedented drought across the country.
Malawi’s President Arthur Peter Mutharika has declared a state of emergency in 11 districts following severe drought conditions that have left millions at risk of hunger.
The United Nations’ World Food Programme (WFP) warned that around three million Syrians could face severe hunger, noting that more than half of the country’s 25.6 million people are already food insecure.
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) has deployed one of its largest ballistic missiles at a newly unveiled underground base on Wednesday (3 February), just two days ahead of mediated nuclear talks with the United States in Muscat, Oman.
Winter weather has brought air travel in the German capital to a complete halt, stranding thousands of passengers as severe icing conditions make runways and aircraft unsafe for operation and force authorities to shut down one of Europe’s key transport hubs.
Storm Leonardo has swept across the Iberian Peninsula, causing widespread flooding, landslides and transport disruption in Portugal and Spain, leaving at least one person dead and forcing thousands to evacuate as authorities issued urgent warnings.
An attacker opened fire at the gates of a Shi'ite Muslim mosque in Islamabad on Friday before detonating a suicide bomb that killed at least 31 people in the deadliest assault of its kind in the capital in more than ten years.
Start your day informed with AnewZ Morning Brief: here are the top news stories for the 5th of February, covering the latest developments you need to know.
Azerbaijan has summoned Russia’s ambassador in Baku and issued a formal protest note over remarks by Russian lawmaker Konstantin Zatulin, escalating diplomatic tensions between the two countries.
France’s “absolute priority” remains the fight against the Islamic State (IS) group, Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot said on Thursday (5 February) during talks with his Syrian counterpart in Damascus, as Paris reassesses its counter-terrorism strategy.
Georgia and the United States have held a rare high-level meeting in Washington, reopening cautious discussion about relations after years of political stagnation.
Using art as a quiet alarm, a new exhibition in Baku is drawing attention to endangered wildlife and the need for environmental responsibility.
The United States and Iran are set to hold nuclear talks in Oman on Friday after Tehran requested a change of venue and a strictly bilateral, nuclear-focused format, a move that is fuelling questions about Iran’s negotiating strategy.
You can download the AnewZ application from Play Store and the App Store.
What is your opinion on this topic?
Leave the first comment