Storms and snow sweep 6 Arab countries, warnings of climate change

Several Arab countries experienced unstable weather conditions yesterday, Sunday, ranging from severe cold to storms, while snowfall and a severe cold wave in a sixth Arab country led to the suspension of studies on Monday and Tuesday.

This came according to what was monitored by the Anadolu Agency in Oman, Qatar, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Egypt and Iraq.

The spokesman for the Iraqi Meteorological Authority, Amer Al-Jaber, stated that the country was affected by a cold polar air mass, especially after snow fell in some western and northern regions.

Al-Jaber expected that the cold wave would begin to gradually recede by next Thursday, with temperatures returning to normal levels starting on Friday.

He explained that the snowfall in the western regions resulted from low humidity levels, with the cold weather continuing to be extremely cold due to the dryness of the air mass.

The governor of Kirkuk, Iraq, announced the suspension of official school hours on Monday and Tuesday, due to the severe cold wave hitting the province.

In the Sultanate of Oman, the Meteorology Department issued a warning on Sunday via the “X” platform of the formation of fog and low clouds in several governorates, including the capital Muscat, during the late night hours and Monday morning, which may lead to a decrease in horizontal visibility.

Qatar Meteorology also reported scattered clouds with light dust in some areas, accompanied by relatively cold night weather and active to strong northwesterly to northeasterly winds.

In Kuwait, the weather forecast indicated that the night weather will be cold to very cold, with partly to mostly cloudy clouds and light to moderate northwesterly winds that may become more active in coastal areas.

A significant drop in temperatures is expected today, Monday, with partly cloudy weather and light to moderate northwesterly winds that may raise dust in exposed areas.

In Saudi Arabia, the National Center of Meteorology issued a series of warnings on Sunday via the “X” platform, warning of dust storms, strong winds, and almost complete lack of horizontal visibility in areas including the Eastern Province and the Northern Borders.

Also in Egypt, the Egyptian Meteorological Authority warned of disruptions to maritime navigation on Monday in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Suez, where waves are expected to reach between 2.5 and 4 metres in height.

The Authority indicated that recent satellite images showed the proliferation of low and medium rain clouds over scattered areas of the north of the country, accompanied by rain of varying intensity.

Source: Anadolu Agency