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by Tony GAMAL-GABRIEL Agence France-Presse BAGHDAD, Iraq (AFP) — Another sandstorm has darkened Iraqi skies and it’s hard to breathe, but Baghdad motorcycle delivery rider Milad Mitti doesn’t have the luxury of missing a day’s work. Like most people in the now blistering hot desert country, the 30-year-old battles on in frustration, wearing goggles and a grey neck warmer over his mouth and nose “so I can breathe”. Iraq, still recovering from decades of war, […]
by Haitham EL-TABEI with AFP correspondents in the Middle East Sandstorms across the Middle East have delayed flights, closed schools and hospitalised thousands — a phenomenon experts say could worsen as climate change warps regional weather patterns. Saudi Arabia on Tuesday became the latest country blanketed with dust that slowed traffic and made iconic towers in the capital difficult to see from more than a few hundred metres (yards) away. Electronic signs along Riyadh’s […]
BEIJING, China (AFP) — A wall of sand over 100 metres high swallowed a city on the fringes of the Gobi desert in northwestern China, in scenes reminiscent of a disaster film. Dunhuang, a tourist draw with a colourful history as a Silk Road outpost, momentarily disappeared in the dust clouds as the storm hit on Sunday. A resident surnamed Zhang told local media Jimu News that the sandstorm came abruptly and swept through the […]
MADRID, Spain (AFP) — Airports on Spain’s Canary Islands were closed again Sunday after a sandstorm hit the archipelago, airport authorities said. Air travel was first disrupted on the archipelago on Saturday after strong winds carrying red sand from the Sahara shrouded the tourist hotspot, forcing flights to and from the islands of Gran Canaria and Tenerife to be cancelled or diverted. Some flights briefly resumed Sunday morning before Spanish airport operator AENA was […]
NEW DELHI, India (AFP) — At least 70 people have been killed and over 100 injured after a fresh wave of violent sandstorms and thunderstorms battered India, officials said Monday. Winds of over 100 kilometers (62 miles) per hour struck parts of the north, east and southern India late Sunday, uprooting trees, electricity pylons, and damaging houses, officials from federal and state disaster management agencies said. Forty people were killed by hail and thunderstorms that […]
KASHI CITY, China (Reuters) — A dense sandstorm hit northwest China’s Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region on Thursday and Friday, disrupting local traffic and forcing residents to wear face masks. Visibility dropped to less than 500 meters in Bachu County and Yingjisha County of Kashi City. The local government initiated emergency response plans for the inclement weather, dispatching traffic police to ensure traffic runs smoothly. Pedestrians wore face masks to prevent inhaling sand particles. “Fortunately, I brought […]
By Duane Dizon and Abigail Basa Eagle News Service Qatar DOHA, Qatar (Eagle News) — Parts of Qatar have been swept by a sudden dust storm on Wednesday afternoon (August 24) causing reduced visibility and astonishment among residents. Strong winds and light rains followed the dusty conditions across the country. The Qatar Meteorology Department (MET) explained that the sudden weather disruption was caused by temporary, strong downdraft winds resulting from thunder cells in the north. […]
Credit: Reuters/CCTV
A severe sandstorm sweeps through northwestern China, turning day into night as it reduces visibility.
