More pain for Ahwazis as petrochemical pollution poisons Hor al-Azim marshlands

Ahwazna

Massive numbers of fish and other aquatic creatures in the Hor al-Azim marshlands of al-Ahwaz are being killed by the heavy and unmonitored discharge of toxic chemicals from petrochemical plants in the region.

In addition to the environmental devastation and loss of biodiversity, this is also the latest in a string of catastrophes to afflict the Ahwazi people. Generations of Ahwazi fishermen, who have made their living from the waters of the Hor al-Azim one of the largest areas of marshland in the Middle East, are threatened with destitution.

The Iranian regime’s damming many of the waterways in the region, diverting waters to Persian areas, has already had catastrophic effects on both the local ecosystem and the peoples of the region, with much of the previously lush farmland turned to desert. The regime remains silent on this devastation.