Scientists and think tanks opine that wars of the future will be fought over water. Yes, you read that right.
As climate change and population growth make water scarcer, a report from the European Commission’s Joint Research Centre estimates that there’s a 75-90 per cent chance of wars being fought over water within the next century. The report was estimated using advance machine-learning algorithms which identified five hotspots for potential conflicts where multiple countries shared the same water body.
The hotspots identified were the Ganges-Brahmaputra region, where the water flows through Bangladesh and India; the Colorado river, which runs through the United States and Mexico; the Indus region, which has water bodies separating India and Pakistan; the Tigris-Euphrates, which flows through Turkey, Syria, Iraq, Iran and Kuwait; and finally, the Nile that runs through 11 African countries.
Lack of water across these water bodies could intensify existing tensions among countries and bring about social unrest.
The River Nile has sowed mystery and myth from the time of the ancient Greeks, including Alexander the Great. The river is also a symbol of romance in many a story transcending generations. But today, she could become the cause for a world at war.
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