Ancient tombs discovered in Iraq due to drought after water levels in the country

Archaeologists in Iraq affected by drought have discovered 40 old tombs after water levels in the country’s largest deposit decreased, said an antique official on Saturday.

The tombs, which are believed to be more than 2,300 years old, were unearthed at the edges of the Mosul dam reservoir in the Khanke region of the province of Duhok in the north of the country.

“Until now, we have discovered approximately 40 tombs,” said Bekas Brefkany, director of antiques at Duhok, who leads the archaeological work on the site.

His team surveyed the area in 2023, but only saw parts of some tombs.

They could only work on the site when the water levels fell “to their lowest” this year, Brefkany said.

In recent years, archaeologists have discovered ruins dating from thousands of years in the same area, as a result of droughts that have affected Iraq for five consecutive years.

“Droughts have a significant impact on many aspects, such as agriculture and electricity. But, for us archaeologists … It allows us to do excavation work,” Brefkany said.

It is believed that newly discovered tombs date from the Hellenistic or Hellenistic-seluric period, according to Brefkany.

He added that his team is working to dig the tombs to transfer them to the Duhok Museum for later study and preservation, before the area is submerged again.

Iraq, which is particularly vulnerable to the effects of climate change, has faced increasing temperatures, chronic water shortage and interannual droughts.

The authorities have warned that this year has been one of the driest since 1933 and that water reserves dropped to only eight percent of their full capacity.

They also blame the ascending dams built in the neighbor Iran and Türkiye for drastically reducing the flow of the Tigris and the Euphrates, which were once laughing, which have watered to Iraq for millennia.

Earl this year, Archaeologists in Egypt announced the tombs of three major statesmen, identified by inscriptions that remain in the tombs. The three sites in the city of Luxor date from the era of the New Kingdom, said the Ministry of Tourism and Antiques of Egypt on social networks, ranging between 1550 and 1070 AC.

• Iraq