Dina Mahmoud (London)
After a year in which many climate records were broken and extreme weather events coincided with the acceleration of crises across the planet, researchers have confirmed that there may be a link between the worsening global warming caused by climate change and the increasing levels of violence in the world.
The bloodshed has not stopped since the beginning of this year, in different parts of the world, most notably the Gaza Strip, where the ongoing war is approaching the completion of its sixth month, at a time when battles in Ukraine continue for the third year, in parallel with a series of coups and coup attempts, which It is located in countries that are mostly African.
In addition, UN officials say that at least 90 percent of refugees around the world come from countries affected by what are known as climate emergencies, or are classified among the countries least able to adapt to unfavorable climate conditions, which means that climate change The resulting negative effects fuel conflicts on the ground.
UN reports also indicate that severe storms and sea level rise have forced more than 20 million people to be internally displaced in various countries around the world, which constitutes an example of climate events whose effects multiply on the most politically and economically fragile countries.
According to experts and researchers, climate change increases the pressures on already fragile governance systems, which is particularly evident in the Sahel region of West Africa, which has witnessed, over the past few years, all the coups that took place on the African continent.
The United Nations has previously warned that the countries of the “African Sahel” may face decades of armed conflicts and displacement, the chances of which will be exacerbated by rising temperatures. The United Nations indicated that this part of the world is witnessing a “climate emergency,” which increases the risk of its societies being exposed to waves of drought, devastating floods, and extreme heat, which reduces the population’s access to basic resources and fuels the occurrence of conflicts among them. Climate change and its consequences may also threaten food security in certain regions. Providing the conditions under which violence can flourish, due to the climate crises resulting from the escalation of competition over land and water; Impacts on food production and increased hunger; And the worsening poverty and inequality that may be associated with this.
Moreover, the decline in agricultural productivity due to climate change causes a large segment of the population of many developing countries to lose a significant amount of their income, increasing the risk of internal unrest.
In statements published by the British magazine “The Week” on its website, experts confirmed that the record rise in temperatures, causing long-term droughts, in turn leads to soil erosion and damage to lands suitable for grazing and agriculture and water sources, which has previously raised tensions between agricultural communities. And others are pastoral, in countries like Mali.
But other experts warned against exaggerating the effects of climate change on the situation on the international scene, pointing out that this phenomenon should not be viewed as the main or only reason that ignites global unrest.
These experts considered that the studies conducted in this regard are sometimes not as accurate as they should be, saying that a number of them involve what they described as an “unjustified focus” on African countries.
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