WAR is often measured in explosions and territory. Maps, arrows and the language of retaliation dominate television screens.

Yet another story unfolds quietly above Middle Eastern battlefields, one rarely noticed: smoke rising, rain carrying residues of burning oil and landscapes absorbing the environmental cost of conflict long before anyone notices. The current confrontation involving the United States, Israel and Iran illustrates this danger. Recent strikes on fuel depots around Tehran sent thick black smoke across the skyline. For residents, the immediate concern is simple: the air is harder to breathe. Windows remain shut, children cough indoors and masks serve as makeshift protection. Yet the damage extends beyond visible smoke. Pollutants travel silently, drifting far from the city long after the fires are controlled.

Burning oil releases a toxic mix: sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxides and fine PM2.5 particles that penetrate deep into lungs and the bloodstream. Tehran already struggles with winter smog and fires at major depots worsen the air, trapping smoke over wide areas. Late winter winds carry haze across the region, blending into a........

© Pakistan Observer