Once World's Bread Basket, Iraq Now A Farming Basket Case

Naj Habeeb and his son, Mustafa, grow rice in a field along the Euphrates River in Iraq's Mishkab village. Laith Hammoudi/MCT

From McClatchy News:

MISHKHAB, Iraq — Once the cradle of agriculture for civilization, the Land Between Two Rivers — the Tigris and Euphrates — has become a basket case for its farmers.

Just ask Naji Habeeb, 85. His family has been growing rice in this village 135 miles southeast of Baghdad for generations. Thin green shoots stick out of the flat paddies, shin-deep in brown water.

The Iraqi government, he claims, still owes him half of what he's due from last year's crop. He turned it in months ago and still hasn't been paid. "Shall I suck my fingers and eat like a baby?" he shouted. "The Ministry (of Agriculture) will never know my family is hungry!"

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My Comment: From being the bread basket for early man ..... we now have this. A sad testament to what man and war can bring.

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