Sandstorm sweeps across Middle East

The thick cloud of sand originated in the desert area of northeastern Syria and northern Iraq, spreading Tuesday through Syria, Jordan, Lebanon, Israel, Cyprus, the Palestinian territories and as far away as Egypt's capital, Cairo.

Several people have been reported killed as a result of the sandstorm. Syria's state-run news agency SANA said three people in the central Hama province had died, while more than 3,500 people had breathing difficulties across several provinces. The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights recorded six deaths across several regions.

Lebanon's Health Ministry attributed the deaths of two women to the sandstorm. The ministry also said at least 750 people were being treated in hospital for respiratory problems. Health authorities throughout the region warned that the ill, the elderly and pregnant women should stay indoors. They warned people to refrain from physical exertion outdoors, because the dust could damage lungs and impair breathing. Many people venturing outside wore face masks or scarves to keep out the particles.

An air quality forecaster at the Israeli Ministry of Environmental Protection said the sandstorm may have broken records.

"In Israel, this was the highest concentration of dust measured in the month of September in the last 15 years, and, in Jerusalem [pictured above], it was the highest concentration of dust which was ever measured in the last 15 years," Eitan Maza told German news agency dpa.

Some schools in Jordan cut classes short.

Syria airstrikes stifled

In Syria, the dust cut visibility for government warplanes, meaning they carried out far fewer airstrikes than usual, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported.

"The sandstorm has paralyzed regime airplanes; there were only a few strikes in Damascus province," Observatory chief Rami Abdel Rahman said.

The observatory also reported that several hospitals in al-Mayadeen, in the northern Deir el-Zour region of Syria, had run out of oxygen tanks and could no longer take in more patients. It was expected that Syrian refugees living in camps throughout the region would be among the worst affected by the dusty conditions.

Several regional commercial flights also had to be diverted. Sandstorms are a regular occurrence across the Middle East during the summer but are normally more common in Iraq and the Gulf region.

The storm was expected to abate on Wednesday and Thursday.

se/cmk (dpa, Reuters, AP, AFP)