"This 2020 discussion paper by geographer Aaron Wolf not only examines the past--how water in the Middle East came to be divided as it is today--but also looks at possible solutions for alleviating a water crisis and the political tension it arouses."--Foreword

This book proposes practical and objective solutions to the entrenched water conflicts in the Middle East. The author reveals and clarifies the complexity of the water conflicts, drawing on years of experience facilitating and chairing water negotiations in the region. The bottom line is: Unless the countries involved co-operate, the consequences will be devastating. The lack of plentiful and clean water for the people will not only result in severe human suffering, but could also have grave geopolitical consequences. The book covers four critical areas: the Euphrates and Tigris Rivers, where new documentation reveals alarming trends; the politically sensitive Golan Heights, with its water disputed by Israel and Syria; the Hasbani water dispute between Lebanon and Israel; the longstanding water resource dispute between the Israelis and Palestinians

Liquid Assets shows that the common view of water as an inevitable cause of future wars is neither rational nor necessary. Typically, two or more parties with claim to the same water sources are thought to play a zero-sum game with each side placing a high emotional and political value over the ownership of the water. However, Franklin Fisher and his coauthors demonstrate that when disputes in ownership are expressed as disputes about money values, in most cases, the benefits of ownership will be surprisingly small. By assigning an economic value to water and treating water as a tradable resource, parties see that the gains from cooperation exceed the costs resulting from the change in ownership. A zero-sum game becomes a win-win situation. To support this new approach, Liquid Assets presents an innovative water allocation model that can be used to assist water management, the cost-benefit analysis of water infrastructure, and the resolution of disputes. The model takes system-wide effects into account and is the first to overcome the failure of actual water markets to cope with the divergence between social and private benefits (as implied by agricultural subsidies), permitting the model-user to impose his or her own values or policies. Liquid Assets applies its methodology to Israel, Jordan, and Palestine, a region where water is scarce and water conflicts are often thought to be explosive. Indeed, this book is the result of a joint effort of Israeli, Jordanian, Palestinian, American, and Dutch experts. But the book‘s message and methods are not restricted to the Middle East. They are applicable to water management and water disputes around the globe.

The Middle East is a region of international concern and political unrest. This book forms a complete reference to both the hydrological as well as the social, economic, political and legal issues in the region and shows how water shortages threaten the renewal of military conflicts and disruption in the area. With resources over-extended due to natural and human causes, the book analyses the river basins of the Euphrates, Tigris, Nile and Jordan and provides detailed study of the hydrology, hydrography and geography of these river basins; it also analyses the needs of the economies and societies of the countries bordering these basins. Conclusions on likely areas of conflict are set within the legal framework of the Helsinki and International Law Commission Rules.

This book presents various approaches to the resolution of the severe water resource issues of the Middle East, with particular emphasis on the Israeli-Palestinian water conflicts. The authors include leading Palestinian and Israeli water experts who have worked together on joint research projects aimed at building up mutual understanding and respect. The studies consider the various approaches that could be used to improve cooperation and solve the problems arising from conflicting interests.

This volume explores the role of water in the Middle East's current economic, political and environmental transformations, which are set to continue in the near future. In addition to examining water conflict from within the domestic contexts of Iraq, Yemen and Syria-- all experiencing high levels of instability today--the contributors shed further light on how conflict over water resources has influenced political relations in the region. They interrogate how competition over water resources may precipitate or affect war in the Middle East, and assess whether or how resource vulnerability impacts fragile states and societies in the region and beyond. Water and Conflict in the Middle East is an essential contribution to our understanding of turbulence in this globally significant region.

The fonner Egyptian Minister of State for Foreign Affairs and fonner UN Secre tary General, Butros Butros Ghali stated after the second Gulf War "The next war in the Middle East will not be fought for oil, but for water. " This famous statement has been echoed by many politicians: shortly before be coming president of Turkey, SOleyman Demirel declared that the waters of the Euphrates and Tigris belonged to Turkey, just as oil belongs to the Arabs. Rafael Eytan, at that time and now again Israeli Minister of Agriculture, declared in 1990 in full-page advertisements in the Jerusalem Post that Israel would never cede the West Bank to the Palestinians because Israel's water supply would otherwise be endangered. Finally, Ismail Serageldin, vice president of the World Bank, declared in 1995 that "the wars of the next century will be over water". These statements are typical of the atmosphere reigning in the Middle East and in several other places around the world concerning the issue of international fresh water resources. Whether these perceptions correspond to an actual threat to a nation's water supply or whether they correspond to the official position of states in negotiations often conducted secretly, is an entirely different matter. A closer analysis of the issue of international fresh water resources, as we attempt in this book, admittedly reveals a dangerous potential for conflict over water.

Water is the most precious resource in the Middle East, with water ownership, management and use among the most difficult and serious problems. The basic issue is two-dimensional; increasing scarcity of water exacerbates inter-state disputes while at the same time, governments face increasing internal demands from various sectors. Geographic reality and issues of politics, culture, religion and tradition complicate an already difficult situation. Competition for non-saline water factors into many regional political controversies as well. As regional domestic, agricultural and industrial water demands grow, finite supplies are pushed to the limit, contributing to a variety of environmental distresses and increasing the potential for regional tensions. Morris argues that the resolution of existing and potential water conflicts will depend on the three critical factors - the management of population growth and distribution, interstate cooperation on international water systems, and the reduction of regional political tensions that impede cooperative efforts. While water conflicts may not cause wars, they may prevent an enduring peace and put at risk a secure future for the inhabitants of the Middle East.