Abandoned hotels and dead fish: climate change in Iraq – in pictures

Sawa Lake and Lake Milh drying out after years of neglect

A remaining pond at the dried-up Sawa Lake on the edge of Iraq’s western desert. AFP

A street sign for Sawa Lake. A sharp drop in rainfall –now only at 30 per cent of what used to be normal for the region – has lowered the underground water table, said a senior advisor at Iraq's water resources ministry. AFP

Hotels and tourist facilities near Sawa Lake have been abandoned. AFP

Dry, arid landscape remains. AFP

What's left of hotel accommodation. AFP

Iraq's Sawa Lake was once a popular tourist destination. AFP

What was once a tourist hotspot now stands empty. AFP

Parts of Sawa Lake are completely dry. AFP

Bottles and plastic bags litter what was once a luscious lake. AFP

What was once a lake is now dry, arid landscape. AFP

Lake Milh, also known as Razzaza Lake, in Iraq's central province of Karbala is also facing the perils of drought. AFP

Dead fish litter Iraq's Lake Milh. AFP

Human activity and climate change have combined to turn the site into a barren wasteland with piles of salt. AFP

This aerial view shows horses running in Lake Milh. AFP

Sawa Lake is now dry due to years of drought. AFP

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