Billion dollar debt, heat wave push Iran to cut electricity to Iraq
Iran has cut off electricity supplies to Iraq amid increased consumption during a hot spell and reports of massive accrued debt by Baghdad, sparking a wave of protests in central and southern Iraqi regions.
As temperatures rise in the blazing hot summer, wide areas in Iraq’s center and south grapple with an electricity crisis that sparked a wave of protests in Basra, Dhi Qar and Diyala, among others.
During his visit to the Diyala province on July 9, Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi said that these power cuts resulted from the electricity shortage plaguing Iran, which led it to cut off its power supply to Iraq.
