On August 14, suicide bombers drove trucks into two Yazidi communities, al-Qataniyah and al-Adnaniyah, in northern Iraq.  The Iraqi Army reported the death toll to be over 400, making it the most deadly attack of the Iraq war.  However, casualty estimates range from 150 to as high as 500.  Estimates of those injured range from 200 to 350 people.  The attack also left 600 homeless.

The majority of the deaths and injuries resulted from mud houses collapsing on their inhabitants.  Rescue teams used bulldozers, shovels, and hands to remove the fallen debris to uncover survivors and bodies.  In these poor communities, as many as 30 family members live in a single house.  So the destruction of a single home may result in many losses.

While no group claimed responsibility for the bombing, it is believed that members of the al-Qaeda (AIQ) in Iraq were the perpetrators.  The US military stated that the attack bore resemblance to other AIQ attacks.  It also stated that it expected an increase in violence in the region prior to a report on the Army’s troop surge due in mid-September.  In addition, targets such as these are seen as soft (easy) targets by insurgents driven out of large cities as a result of this recent surge.

The Yazidi are a religious minority in the Kurdish region of Iraq.  They are an isolated community, due to their religious beliefs and years of persecution by Muslims and Christians.  The main reason for their continued persecution is that the Yazidi revere an angel, in addition to a god, which Muslims and Christians equate to Satan.  Recent violence against the Yazidi includes an attack by gunmen in April, which resulted in 23 deaths.  It is believed that a stoning of a Yazidi girl who converted to Islam and eloped with a Sunni man sparked the earlier attack.

Many have condemned the attacks and Major-General Mixon, the commander of US forces in northern Iraq described the attacks as acts of genocide.  As many individuals in the Yazidi community lost family members in the attack, members fear annihilation.  Members of the Yazidi community have talked with Deputy Prime Minister Barham Salih and asked for more security.  Other members have threatened that unless Iraq provides them with sufficient security that they will form their own security to protect their community.

For more information please see:
BBC:  “Fears over rising Iraq bomb toll”  16 August 2007. 

The Economist:  “No one is safe”  16 August 2007. 

International Herald Tribune:  “Iraq’s intolerance”  16 August 2007. 

London Times:  “Al-Qaeda bombing kills and maims 600”  16 August 2007. 

St. Petersburg Times:  “Once more, Yazidis find themselves as targets”  16 August 2007. 

Telegraph:  “Iraq bombs:  500 die in worst terror attack”  16 August 2007. 

Washington Post: “Toll in N Iraq Passes 400; Attack is deadliest of war”  16 August 2007. 

Washington Post:  “Yazidis fear annihilation after Iraq bombings”  16 August 2007. 

Reuters:  “Factbox: Who are the Yazidis?”  15 August 2007.

Yemen is facing an impending water shortage.  Saana, the capital, is most prone for disaster because of its rapid growth.  The water shortage is further compounded because of the contamination in the nation’s limited supply of drinking water.

Yemen is a dry land.  The country estimates that it only obtains about 2,500 million cubic meters (MCM) of fresh water a year.  However, the country’s demand for freshwater is 3,200 MCM a year creating a 700 MCM yearly deficit.  This deficit makes the nation vulnerable to drought and possible famine, because of the inaccessibility of drinking water.  For example, a well in the Yemen must be from 600-1200 meters deep, whereas wells in other gulf nations are only 200 meters deep. The limited water supply creates a looming problem.

Sanaa’s rapid growth exacerbates the shortage.  The capital city’s population is growing at a rate near 7-8% per year.  In 1975, the city only had 175,000 residents in 1975.  Currently, two million residents live in the city.  The city’s infrastructure, especially regarding water, has not adjusted to the city’s growth.  For example according to IRIN, only 15-25% of the city households get drinking water from the public water supply network and use the public sanitation system.  The rest of the households rely on private vendors for their water supply. 

Another problem is contamination.  The World Health Organization believes that only 50% of the Yemen’s water supplies are safe.  According to the Yemen Observer, over 75% of the 20 million Yemenis are exposed to water borne diseases because of contaminated water.  A Yemeni parliamentary report stated that 20,000 children die from water related illnesses every year in Yemen, which is 50% of all child related deaths in Yemen.  The most common causes of death from water related diseases are diarrhea, malaria or typhoid.  The contamination is usually caused by the human and factory waste. 

This problem has not been adequately addressed by the Yemeni government.  The nation is facing an impending shortage of water where Yemen will have to rely heavily on imported water.  This will place undue pressure on an already struggling people, which may force many to choose to drink contaminated water because they cannot afford clean water.

IRIN.  YEMEN: Rapid urbanisation threatening capital’s water supplies.  14 August 2007.

Yemen Times.  Water in Yemen …….Reduction and pollution. 29 June 2005. 

Yemen Observer. Contamination continues to plague Yemen’s drinking water.  28 July 2007.