Ankara suspends pumping Euphrates’ water (into Syria)

A new Turkish aggression against Syria: Ankara suspends pumping Euphrates’ water

The Turkish government recently cut off the flow of the Euphrates River, threatening primarily Syria but also Iraq with a major water crisis. Al-Akhbar found out that the water level in Lake Assad has dropped by about six meters, leaving millions of Syrians without drinking water.

Yet another major crime against humanity carried out by NATO.

How many of you are watching this on CNN or the BBC? Is this even in the western media?

Just to recap: millions of Syrians cut off from fresh water, to enforce political change within the sovereign Syrian state.

How is this justified?

a reply to: Vovin

Notice they are doing this during elections. DURING...The Syrians living abroad are voting now... the voting for Syrians still inside Syria will be on June 2. www.theguardian.com...

This is a warning to the people of Syria, vote the way we want you to or we will make you suffer. And no, it's not in western media... none of this is.

I hope they stand up and vote their conscious no matter the threats against them!

Despite the carnage in Syria, the country's president has retained significant support among large sections of the population, particularly among Christians, Alawites and other religious minorities.

On Wednesday, President Barack Obama said the U.S. will increase assistance to the Syrian opposition, opening the way for the likely training and possibly equipping of moderate rebels fighting to oust Assad.

Obama may be trying to kill the Christian groups and minorities in Syria, but God willing they will win against such atrocities!

I know this is unpopular but.. Its their water if they can cut it off. If its on their country and in their control they can and do have that right. Its a jerk move but its all legal.

a reply to: Vovin

Rev 16:12

And the sixth angel poured out his vial upon the great river Euphrates; and the water thereof was dried up, that the way of the kings of the east might be prepared.

originally posted by: Vovin
Yet another major crime against humanity carried out by NATO.

Ankara isn't all of NATO. It's just Ankara.

How is this justified?

They can do what they want with their water.
If Syria doesn't like it, then Syria has to play nice with Ankara.

Actually, international LAW FORBIDS SUCH ACTIONS........
Or Canada could cut off the US from lots of water.....
The UN may have to step in to stop this war crime....

originally posted by: stirling
The UN may have to step in to stop this war crime....

'cuz the UN isn't a corrupt and useless cesspool ...
The UN doesn't have any teeth. None.

originally posted by: FlyersFan

originally posted by: Vovin
Yet another major crime against humanity carried out by NATO.

Ankara isn't all of NATO. It's just Ankara.

How is this justified?

They can do what they want with their water.
If Syria doesn't like it, then Syria has to play nice with Ankara.

Thanks, genius. Obviously Turkey isn't all of NATO. Maybe if you've been watching this situation for the past three years you would understand what role NATO has there a little bit better. Maybe you would understand that Syria can't do anything to restore DRINKING WATER FOR MILLIONS OF ITS CITIZENS without risking a collective retaliation from NATO.

But hey, it's all ok because the river is in Turkey so it's up to Turkey if they want to deny an entire country access to necessary sustenance, such as water in the desert.

The lack of compassion for human beings and the contempt for international law and order by some members on this site makes me want to puke sometimes. The fact that a NATO member has just denied an entire country to a fundamental right of immediate subsistence to incite regime change is appalling. Maybe the world should embargo food exports to the USA, I bet opinions would change real quick then.

originally posted by: Vovin
Thanks, genius.

Compared to some here, yes ... yes I am a genius.

Maybe if you've been watching this situation ...

I see it just fine. OBVIOUSLY there are politics at play between the two countries that have had strained relations.

The lack of compassion for human beings and the contempt for international law and order by some members on this site makes me want to puke sometimes. .

Whatever dude. Stew in your anger juices. But facts are facts ....
Your jab at NATO, when it was just Ankara doing this deserved to be pointed out.

I get the impression this thing between Turkey and Syria operates on a whole different level from, while parallel TO to overriding civil war.

The petty fighting back and forth and a few BIG BIG attempts to strike each other in horrible ways (See Chemical weapons captured inside Turkey meant for use there) is absurd. Yet, this does kinda take the cake. Cutting off water? Really??

Turkey better consider what it's doing very very carefully, I'd think. They are in the cat bird's seat to Syria..but they aren't the Apex Predator in this pond. There are bigger, and they are tweaking some noses there with this stunt too, I'm sure.

@ Turkey IS NATO..but NATO isn't Turkey. In fact, with recent stories out about Western efforts to undermine and overthrow the Ankara Government? I'd say they aren't NATO's favorite people right now, either. A mess, all around.

originally posted by: Wrabbit2000
@ Turkey IS NATO..but NATO isn't Turkey.

Yep. That's what I was saying. And, with many things, Turkey doesn't look like it's playing NATO rules anymore ... and it doesn't care if it ticks NATO off either. I wouldn't be surprised to see a population there demand to leave NATO all together. That's why the OP comment "Yet another major crime against humanity carried out by NATO." was in error.

originally posted by: stirling
Actually, international LAW FORBIDS SUCH ACTIONS........
Or Canada could cut off the US from lots of water.....
The UN may have to step in to stop this war crime....

Syrians plans to destroy Dams in turkey

My sounds like this is deeper than once thought. This is just a excuse for syria to strike Turkey.

OH and since Syria is so innocent le tme drop this.
Syria illegally cut off a good sized chunk of Jordan’s water supply decades ago; the 1994 peace treaty with Israel requires Israel to make up that shortfall.

So if syria wants to run to the UN they have to agree to release water to Jordan as well otherwise the UN will tell them settle it yourselves.

@ GOZER. That would be worrisome IF IT WAS A ANGEL DOING IT AND NOT A MAN AT A SWITCH. NOT TIME YET. LOL!

a reply to: Vovin

I don't see this in Arab news - Most likely because its a positive article demonstrating Israeli innovation / investment in an effort to resolve long standing issues. Secondly please educate yourself on what NATO is and the areas it affects. Your attempt to try to blame NATO for anything and everything not only takes away from the thread, it presents you as someone with an axe to grind for no other reason than you hate NATO.


Israel Solves Water Woes With Desalination

After experiencing its driest winter on record, Israel is responding as never before — by doing nothing.

While previous droughts have been accompanied by impassioned public service advertisements to conserve, this time around it has been greeted with a shrug — thanks in large part to an aggressive desalination program that has transformed this perennially parched land into perhaps the most well-hydrated country in the region.

"We have all the water we need, even in the year which was the worst year ever regarding precipitation," said Avraham Tenne, head of the desalination division of Israel's Water Authority. "This is a huge revolution."

By solving its water woes, Israel has created the possibility of transforming the region in ways that were unthinkable just a few years ago. But reliance on this technology also carries some risks, including the danger of leaving a key element of the country's infrastructure vulnerable to attack.

Situated in the heart of the Middle East, Israel is in one of the driest regions on earth, traditionally relying on a short, rainy season each winter to replenish its limited supplies. But rainfall only covers about half of Israel's water needs, and this past winter, that amount was far less.

According to the Israeli Meteorological Service, northern Israel, which usually gets the heaviest rainfalls, received just 50 to 60 percent of the annual average.

Tenne said the country has managed to close its water gap through a mixture of conservation efforts, advances that allow nearly 90 percent of wastewater to be recycled for agricultural use and, in recent years, the construction of desalination plants.

Since 2005, Israel has opened four desalination plants, with a fifth set to go online later this year. Roughly 35 percent of Israel's drinking-quality water now comes from desalination. That number is expected to exceed 40 percent by next year and hit 70 percent in 2050.

The Sorek desalination plant, located roughly 15 kilometers (10 miles) south of Tel Aviv, provides a glimpse of that future.

Disputes over water have in the past sparked war, and finding a formula for dividing shared water resources has been one of the "core" issues in Israeli-Palestinian peace talks.

Click link for remainder of article.

Maybe Syria and Iraq should look at desalinization technology.

originally posted by: FlyersFan

originally posted by: Wrabbit2000
@ Turkey IS NATO..but NATO isn't Turkey.

Yep. That's what I was saying. And, with many things, Turkey doesn't look like it's playing NATO rules anymore ... and it doesn't care if it ticks NATO off either. I wouldn't be surprised to see a population there demand to leave NATO all together. That's why the OP comment "Yet another major crime against humanity carried out by NATO." was in error.

Thanks for your opinion but I made no error. Considering I'm in a NATO country myself, I'm pretty damn sure that any NATO member's action affects the alliance itself.

In case you haven't noticed (which you haven't, obviously), Syria did nothing when Turkey bombarded Syrian towns and military units and shot down Syrian aircraft over the past two years. You think Syria was just being polite? Turkey was baiting Syria into retaliating so NATO could jump in with its "no fly zone" razing of the country. Same thing is happening again. If Turkey wasn't wearing a NATO suit then Syria would be fighting it.

originally posted by: Xcathdra
a reply to: Vovin
. Secondly please educate yourself on what NATO is and the areas it affects.

I have a formal education on this subject. You are the one who is lacking education. Just because you're American doesn't mean you're the only person in the world who is in a NATO country and understands what NATO is. Considering the consistent and embarrassing failure of American foreign policy in the last decade, maybe you should study this in another country so you can learn how to play the game of geopolitics without having to kill and threaten millions of innocent people in the process.

a reply to: Vovin

Formal education? doubtful based on your post contents / comments.

For being in a NATO country you are woefully lacking in terms of what the alliance it is and what it affects. Needless to say it has nothing to do with internal issues of a member nation. We know this as fact when we review history, specifically Greece and Turkey.

The false claim was made in the op by trying to link NATO to Turkeys action to cut water. While you are certainly entitled to your opinion, you are not entitled to misrepresent non existent facts in an effort to paint a picture based on your personal hatred towards the west / NATO while thinking the comment would go by unchallenged.

As for failed foreign policy I completely agree. However, here we are, still around and kicking so apparently the foreign policy failure does not have as much impact as you wished it did. In another failure of your formal education you seem to conveniently ignore the government and their actions towards their own people. It means your attempt to blame the US for all of those deaths is again based on hatred and not fact.

As you are so fond of pointing out what occurs in Turkey is no one else's business but their own. Syria needs to but out.

originally posted by: Wrabbit2000

Yet, this does kinda take the cake. Cutting off water? Really??

Turkey better consider what it's doing very very carefully, I'd think. They are in the cat bird's seat to Syria..but they aren't the Apex Predator in this pond. There are bigger, and they are tweaking some noses there with this stunt too, I'm sure.

@ Turkey IS NATO..but NATO isn't Turkey. In fact, with recent stories out about Western efforts to undermine and overthrow the Ankara Government? I'd say they aren't NATO's favorite people right now, either. A mess, all around.

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I found this ... "BIBLICAL-OPINION and OBSERVATION":"Biblical! Turkey Just Stopped the Flow of the Euphrates River!"

-
I also found some OLD ( perhaps outdated ) Background INFO:

Can the Water Issues between Turkey, Syria, and Iraq Be Dissolved?
Problem Solving Materials

Use the information in this document to answer the questions related to the water issues between Turkey, Syria, and Iraq. You have the following documents to work with:

• A set of maps
• A brief timeline of important events related to the watershed
• A position statement for each of the three countries.
• The U.N. Convention on the Law of the Non-Navigational Uses of International Watercourses (1997

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OPINION: The HEADLINE could have been:

TURKEY cuts off Euphrates River ... Water Crisis: SYRIA, IRAQ


OBSERVATION: Yep, THIS COULD (if not already) become a ... BIG-DEAL.
.

a reply to: Xcathdra

That's pretty cool!

a reply to: FarleyWayne

Oh indeed.. I agree. It's an enormous thing when they all essentially live in the desert. Water control and diversion is the stuff of wars and national security policy in that region. After all...a bomb kills a few but diversion of a major water source risks hundreds of thousands or even millions in a short term kind of way.

a reply to: Vovin
Yeah .... no hate and totally on topic there bud .... sure. /sarcasm

BTW .. You just said this -

I'm pretty damn sure that any NATO member's action affects the alliance itself.

Which contradicts your opening post.

What you just said there is correct ... that one NATO members actions CAN AFFECT the alliance .. but what you said in the opening post was that NATO itself did the action. That's very different. If Turkeys action affects NATO, that means Turkey is doing the action and NATO is just getting the fallout from it. So you contradicted your opening post. Have you realized you got the opening post wrong and are now going with this latest (and correct) statement ... that Turkey affected NATO and that NATO didn't turn off the water?