May 09, 2023 11:30 AM<\/p>\n
Karbala, IRAQ \u2013 Haydar Mohamed once grew wheat and barley, but Iraq\u2019s relentless drought has forced him off the land and into the city where he now works in construction and drives a taxi.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe transition is difficult,\u201d said Mohamed, 42, who abandoned village life several years ago for a shantytown in the central city of Karbala.<\/p>\n
He is part of a growing wave of climate migrants in Iraq, a country that is on the frontlines of the global warming crisis.<\/p>\n
Years of dire water scarcity left him no choice but to move, said the father of five. <\/p>\n
\u201cIf you don\u2019t work,\u201d he said, \u201cyou don\u2019t eat.\u201d<\/p>\n