{"id":8464,"date":"2021-09-10T12:09:19","date_gmt":"2021-09-10T09:09:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/mena\/%d8%b5%d9%8a%d9%81-%d8%ad%d8%a7%d8%b1-%d9%88%d8%ad%d8%b1%d8%a7%d8%a6%d9%82-%d9%82%d8%a7%d8%b3%d9%8a%d8%a9\/"},"modified":"2022-04-21T10:32:58","modified_gmt":"2022-04-21T07:32:58","slug":"hot-summer-and-severe-fires","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/mena\/en\/hot-summer-and-severe-fires\/","title":{"rendered":"Hot summer and severe fires..what\u2019s the link with Climate change?"},"content":{"rendered":"
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This summer, the Middle East has been hit with a wave of unprecedented heat and forest fires. We have witnessed nearly double the average number of forest fires in the region, as well as an increase in their intensity and destruction. These extreme weather events have led to huge losses in human lives, biodiversity (especially forests), and forced migrations, not to mention worsening of air quality in the midst of a global pandemic. But how are these catastrophes linked to climate change?<\/h4>\n\n

Algeria<\/a> has seen more than 100 forest fires in one month (August), causing more damage than all the fires in the past 12 years, killing 90 people and destroying more than 10,000 hectares of land and forest. In Tunisia, fires ravaged the country in June, destroying more than 5000 hectares of forest. Fires also started in Lebanon, in the north, destroying 7500 hectares of land, and quickly moved to the southwest of Syria<\/a>. <\/p>\n\n

Some countries, including Algeria, claim the fires were instigated by conflict. Although forest fires are usually instigated by anthropogenic causes, and other times natural causes, it is now widely agreed amongst the scientific community that climate change exacerbates the number, intensity and likelihood of occurrence of this natural disaster. Climate change is affecting the region through drier conditions, which lead to drought and desertification, and less rainfall – all of which are conducive to fires. <\/p>\n\n

Wildfires are fueled by global heating, which is caused by the emissions of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere, and the main culprit is the burning of fossil fuels. <\/p>\n\n

Ironically, the forest fires of Algeria started on the same day the sixth assessment report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) was made publicly available. Some researchers believe that this is the last IPCC report<\/a> that can make a difference in curbing the effects of climate change if it is taken seriously by governments and immediately implemented in policies, putting much pressure on the results of COP26, which will be held this November in Glasgow. <\/p>\n\n

The main takeaways from the 6th IPCC report <\/a>are twofold:<\/p>\n\n