CUBA is next. Iran and Lebanon continue to burn. Conflicts from Gaza to Sudan to the DRC persist, though they are yesterday’s news. The humanitarian, societal and economic toll of proliferating conflict is difficult to fathom. No wonder then that one silent victim of the perma-war is repeatedly overlooked: the planet.

Conflict destroys the environment and exacerbates climate change. Such ‘environcide’ is understandably sidelined amidst the panic of war. Until it becomes impossible to ignore, as it did in Tehran recently, when the city was cloaked in acid rain, resulting from the bombing of fuel depots, which spewed oil particles and sulphur compounds. The air quality deteriorated sufficiently for our own Met Office to warn that the continued targeting of polluting sites in Iran would worsen air quality in our western provinces.

The environmental impact of today’s conflicts will plague communities for decades to come. Missile strikes and drone attacks produce toxin- and particle-laden debris, and destroy industrial and sanitation infrastructure that leaks chemicals, plastics and other poisons into water systems and the air. Military scrap piles up and leaches polluting materials into the soil, leading to chronic health........

© Dawn