
-
'Incredible' Curry scores 52 as Warriors down Grizzlies, Bucks edge Suns
-
Asian markets edge up but uncertainty rules ahead of Trump tariffs
-
Nintendo's megahit Switch console: what to know
-
Nintendo to unveil upgrade to best-selling Switch console
-
China practises hitting key ports, energy sites in Taiwan drills
-
Oil, sand and speed: Saudi gearheads take on towering dunes
-
All eyes on Tsunoda at Japan GP after ruthless Red Bull move
-
'Image whisperers' bring vision to the blind at Red Cross museum
-
Hay shines as New Zealand make 292-8 in Pakistan ODI
-
Other governments 'weaponising' Trump language to attack NGOs: rights groups
-
UK imposes online entry permit on European visitors
-
How a Brazilian chief is staving off Amazon destruction
-
Meme politics: White House embraces aggressive alt-right online culture
-
China launches military drills in Taiwan Strait
-
US senator smashes record with 25-hour anti-Trump speech
-
Brazil binman finds newborn baby on garbage route
-
US senator smashes record with marathon anti-Trump speech
-
Trump advisor Waltz faces new pressure over Gmail usage
-
Niger junta frees ministers of overthrown government
-
Trump set to unleash 'Liberation Day' tariffs
-
Boeing chief to acknowledge 'serious missteps' at US Senate hearing
-
Real Madrid hold Real Sociedad in eight-goal thriller to reach Copa del Rey final
-
Nuno salutes 'special' Elanga after stunning strike fires Forest
-
PSG survive scare against Dunkerque to reach French Cup final
-
Sundowns edge Esperance as crowd violence mars quarter-final
-
Nottingham Forest beat Man Utd, Saka scores on Arsenal return
-
Elanga wonder-goal sinks Man Utd as Forest eye Champions League berth
-
Stock markets mostly advance ahead of Trump tariffs deadline
-
US movie theaters urge 45-day 'baseline' before films hit streaming
-
Saka scores on return as Arsenal beat Fulham
-
Third-division Bielefeld shock holders Leverkusen in German Cup
-
Ball-blasting 'Torpedo bats' making waves across MLB opening weekend
-
Newsmax shares surge more than 2,000% in days after IPO
-
Thousands of Hungarians protest against Pride ban law
-
GM leads first quarter US auto sales as tariffs loom
-
Tesla sales tumble in Europe in the first quarter
-
No 'eye for an eye' approach to US tariffs: Mexico
-
NFL club owners back dynamic kickoffs, delay tush push vote
-
Trump 'perfecting' new tariffs as nervous world braces
-
Trump nominee says to press UK on Israel arms
-
French court says Le Pen appeal ruling could come before presidential vote
-
The battle to control assets behind Bosnia crisis
-
Prabhsimran powers Punjab to IPL win over Lucknow
-
Mass layoffs targeting 10,000 jobs hit US health agencies
-
Tiger's April Foolishness: plan to play Masters just a joke
-
Myanmar quake toll passes 2,700, nation halts to honour victims
-
Turkish fans, artists urge Muse to cancel Istanbul gig
-
US seeks death penalty for accused killer of insurance CEO
-
UK govt moves to block sentencing guidelines for minority defendants
-
Trump puts world on edge as 'Liberation Day' tariffs loom

Syrian farmers abandon the land for steadier jobs
After years of war, drought and economic crisis, Omar Abdel-Fattah was forced to rent out his farmland in northeast Syria, preferring a more stable job to provide for his family.
"It breaks my heart to see someone else working my land," said Abdel-Fattah, 50, who grew wheat, cotton and vegetables in Jaabar al-Saghir, in Syria's Raqa province, for three decades.
He said he had to abandon agriculture to make ends meet and provide an education for his eight children because he can "no longer keep up with the costs of farming", including irrigation.
Agriculture was once a pillar of northeast Syria's economy.
The region was the country's breadbasket before 2011, when the government repressed peaceful protests, triggering a conflict that has killed more than 500,000 people and displaced millions.
Now the effects of climate change -- particularly rising temperatures and drought -- along with spiralling costs are dealing a heavy blow to agricultural production and the families that depend on it to survive.
Abdel-Fattah found a job at a water pumping station run by the area's semi-autonomous Kurdish administration.
It pays around $70 a month, so he also runs a small shop on the side selling hardware and other items to get by.
Some of his relatives have also rented out their land, while others have left Syria because of the dire financial situation there, Abdel-Fattah said.
He urged the Kurdish administration and international agricultural organisations to provide "support and loans" for farmers in the area.
"This is the only solution to save agriculture, help farmers and encourage them to return to their fields again," he said.
- Farming a 'loss' -
Across vast swathes of Raqa province, empty farmland sits beside cultivated fields where farmers and workers harvest crops, including potatoes and corn.
Syria has endured more than 12 years of civil war, and Raqa was the centre of the Islamic State group's brutal "caliphate" in Syria until their ouster from the city in 2017.
In the town of Qahtaniyah, Jassem al-Rashed, 55, said agriculture was his only income for 30 years but now it has become a "loss".
His children initially helped him on the land, but now he looks after the crops alone.
"Two of my children work in the livestock trade, and two others left for Europe, while three others joined the traffic police and security forces," he said.
"Farming is no longer right for them, after the recent years of drought," he added.
In November, the World Weather Attribution group said that human-caused climate change had raised temperatures, making drought about 25 times more likely in Syria and neighbouring Iraq.
Suhair Zakkout is the spokesperson in Damascus for the International Committee of the Red Cross.
She has previously told AFP that "Syria's agricultural production has fallen by approximately 50 percent over the last 10 years" because of war and climate change.
In the far northeastern corner of the country, former farmer Faruk Mohammed, 40, gazed at his uncultivated land at Tal Hamis in Hasakeh province.
Now a teacher employed by the Kurdish administration, he said he had changed job "to earn a living -- nothing more, nothing less".
- 'Dangerous factors' -
He too expressed the hope that local authorities would help farmers and work to "save what's left of the agricultural land".
"Years of drought have hurt farmers, as well as the rise in fuel prices," he said.
More than a decade of war has shattered Syria's economy, and long daily blackouts mean people have to rely on generators for power amid regular fuel shortages.
Farmers told AFP they struggled to pay for seeds and fertiliser, with some turning to solar panels to help power water pumps.
Leila Sarukhan, an official with the Kurdish administration, acknowledged that factors including drought and rising costs had led to a decline in agriculture.
"Climate change is impacting rainfall, while desertification expands in northeast Syria," she told AFP, adding: "These are dangerous factors for farming."
Back in Raqa province, farmer Adnan Ibrahim said his children had left agriculture behind and joined the Kurdish security services instead "to earn a steady salary".
He pointed to farming equipment sitting idle near the house, and lamented the impact of climate change as well as rising prices.
But the 56-year-old also said the ever-present spectre of conflict influenced his children's decision.
"We are afraid of cultivating our land," he said.
"War could break out at any time and warplanes could bomb our lands. So having a steady job is better."
P.Martin--AMWN