Iraqi marshlands believed to have been the biblical Garden of Eden could win extra protection as a World Heritage Site by 2011, the UN said last week. This should secure the future of south-west Asia鈥檚 largest wetland, protecting the unique habitat and wildlife, and the Marsh Arabs that live there.
The marshlands 鈥� which nestle in the 鈥渇ertile crescent鈥� of ancient Mesopotamia, where the world鈥檚 first civilisations emerged 鈥� were destroyed in the early 1990s by Saddam Hussein to punish the Marsh Arabs鈥� alleged treachery in the Iran-Iraq war. However, when Hussein鈥檚 regime fell in 2003, the Arabs destroyed dams to reflood the marshlands, and a $14 million UN-funded project has already helped to restore 60 per cent of the region.
The Iraqi government must now convince the UN that it is taking steps to safeguard the wildlife, the environment and the Marsh Arabs鈥� way of life.
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