Volume 11 - Number 2 February – March 2015 £4 TTHISHIS ISSUEISSUE: EENVIRONMENTNVIRONMENT ● WWaterater rresourcesesources iinn thethe MMiddleiddle EastEast ● WWars,ars, ddepletedepleted uraniumuranium andand soilsoil pollutionpollution ● IIran’sran’s lloomingooming waterwater crisiscrisis ● CCulturalultural heritageheritage aandnd thethe environmentenvironment ● CCanan desalinationdesalination provideprovide a sustainablesustainable sourcesource ofof water?water? ● TThehe NNileile BBasinasin andand hydrosolidarityhydrosolidarity ● NNanotechnologyanotechnology ● PPLUSLUS RReviewseviews andand eventsevents inin LondonLondon Volume 11 - Number 2 February – March 2015 £4 TTHISHIS IISSUESSUE: EENVIRONMENTNVIRONMENT ● WWaterater rresourcesesources iinn tthehe MMiddleiddle EEastast ● WWars,ars, ddepletedepleted uuraniumranium aandnd ssoiloil ppollutionollution ● IIran’sran’s lloomingooming wwaterater ccrisisrisis ● CCulturalultural hheritageeritage aandnd tthehe eenvironmentnvironment ● CCanan ddesalinationesalination pproviderovide a ssustainableustainable sourcesource ooff water?water? ● TThehe NNileile BBasinasin aandnd hydrosolidarityhydrosolidarity ● NNanotechnologyanotechnology ● PPLUSLUS RReviewseviews aandnd eeventsvents inin LLondonondon Atefeh Khas, Urmia Lake, Iran. From Refl ection series (Refl ection of Lake), 2009. About the London Middle East Institute (LMEI) Photo by Shahrnaz Zarkesh. Courtesy of Janet Rady Fine Art Th e London Middle East Institute (LMEI) draws upon the resources of London and SOAS to provide teaching, training, research, publication, consultancy, outreach and other services related to the Middle Volume 11 - Number 2 East. It serves as a neutral forum for Middle East studies broadly defi ned and helps to create links between February – March 2015 individuals and institutions with academic, commercial, diplomatic, media or other specialisations. With its own professional staff of Middle East experts, the LMEI is further strengthened by its academic Editorial Board membership – the largest concentration of Middle East expertise in any institution in Europe. Th e LMEI also Professor Nadje Al-Ali SOAS has access to the SOAS Library, which houses over 150,000 volumes dealing with all aspects of the Middle East. 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Mrs Ionis Th ompson Saudi-British Society and BFSA Dr Shelagh Weir Independent Researcher LMEI Staff: Professor Sami Zubaida Birkbeck College Director Dr Hassan Hakimian Coordinating Editor Executive Offi cer Louise Hosking Megan Wang Events and Magazine Coordinator Vincenzo Paci Listings Administrative Assistant Valentina Zanardi Vincenzo Paci Designer Shahla Geramipour Disclaimer: Letters to the Editor: Th e Middle East in London is published fi ve times a year by the London Middle Opinions and views expressed in the Middle East Please send your letters to the editor at East Institute at SOAS in London are, unless otherwise stated, personal the LMEI address provided (see left panel) views of authors and do not refl ect the views of their or email [email protected] Publisher and organisations nor those of the LMEI and the MEL's Editorial Offi ce Editorial Board. Although all advertising in the Th e London Middle East Institute SOAS magazine is carefully vetted prior to publication, the University of London MBI Al Jaber Building, 21 Russell LMEI does not accept responsibility for the accuracy Square, London WC1B 5EA of claims made by advertisers. United Kingdom T: +44 (0)20 7898 4490 SSubscriptions:ubscriptions: F: +44 (0)20 7898 4329 E: [email protected] www.soas.ac.uk/lmei/ To subscribe to Th e Middle East in London, please visit: ISSN 1743-7598 www.soas.ac.uk/lmei/affi liation/ Contents LMEI Board of Trustees 4 17 Professor Paul Webley (Chair) Director, SOAS EDITORIAL Nanotechnology is a big risk if Professor Richard Black, SOAS decision-makers think small Dr John Curtis Iran Heritage Foundation 5 Hamid Pouran Sir Vincent Fean INSIGHT Professor Ben Fortna, SOAS Water resources in the Middle 19 Mr Alan Jenkins East: scarce, emotional, REVIEWS Dr Karima Laachir, SOAS politicised and misunderstood BOOKS Dr Dina Matar, SOAS Tony Allan Understanding the Political Dr Barbara Zollner Birkbeck College Economy of the Arab Uprisings 7 Hassan Hakimian ENVIRONMENT LMEI Advisory Council Wars, depleted uranium and 20 Lady Barbara Judge (Chair) Professor Muhammad A. S. Abdel Haleem soil pollution Th e Hizbullah Phenomenon: Near and Middle East Department, SOAS Hamid Pouran Politics and Communication Mr Stephen Ball KPMG Seyed Ali Alavi H E Khalid Al-Duwaisan GVCO 9 Ambassador, Embassy of the State of Kuwait Mrs Haifa Al Kaylani Iran’s looming water crisis 21 Arab International Women’s Forum Kaveh Madani Gaza: A History Dr Khalid Bin Mohammed Al Khalifa President, University College of Bahrain Atef Alshaer Professor Tony Allan 11 King’s College and SOAS Dr Alanoud Alsharekh Cultural heritage and the 22 Senior Fellow for Regional Politics, IISS environment BOOKS IN BRIEF Mr Farad Azima NetScientifi c Plc John Curtis Dr Noel Brehony 24 MENAS Associates Ltd. Professor Magdy Ishak Hanna 13 EVENTS IN LONDON British Egyptian Society Can desalination provide a HE Mr Mazen Kemal Homoud Ambassador, Embassy of the Hashemite sustainable source of water? Kingdom of Jordan Hassan Arafat Founding Patron and 15 Donor of the LMEI Th e Nile Basin and Sheikh Mohamed Bin Issa Al Jaber MBI Al Jaber Foundation hydrosolidarity Karin Aggestam, Dan-Erik Andersson, Ronny Berndtsson and Kaveh Madani February – March 2015 The Middle East in London 3 EEDITORIALDITORIAL © Wikimedia Commons, Public Domain Wikimedia © DDearear RReadereader A thick dust plume over Kuwait and the north-western tip of the Persian Gulf. The plume, some 100 kilometres in width, extends from Saudi Arabia across eastern Kuwait and into Iran, where the dust appears to mingle with clouds. NASA image created by the MODIS Rapid Response Team Hamid Pouran, IHF Visiting Fellow in Iran's Environmental Sustainability he countries of the Middle East suff er may impact the food import policies of River Basin and competition to access its from major environmental problems. Middle Eastern countries. invaluable water supply in North Africa TAlthough mismanagement and a In my piece, I describe how military is the subject of Karin Aggestam, Dan- disappointing track record of implementing confl icts in the Middle East have caused Erik Andersson, Ronny Berndtsson and the correct policies contribute to their irreparable damages to environmental Kaveh Madani’s article. Th ey talk about environmental issues, other factors too quality. Soil pollution by depleted uranium how securing a large share of the Nile has worsen the region’s environmental status: (DU) and oil and their long-term impacts caused tension among the 11 countries that namely their arid and semi-arid climates on the ecosystem are highlighted. Iran’s use its water and explain why cooperation and military confl ict. emerging water crisis is the focus of Kaveh between them is a necessity. In another Th is is the fi rst issue produced by Th e Madani’s article. He examines major drivers article I consider the GCC countries’ thirst Middle East in London dedicated solely to that are pushing Iran’s water resources to import nanomaterial incorporated high- the environmental concerns of the region. towards the edge and suggests some tech products. While nanotechnology has Th e articles here provide a tangible image strategies that may help mitigate the issues. started to become commercialised and a of the major environmental problems that John Curtis discusses an interesting – and number of relevant products are available, these countries are facing: from the scarcity oft en neglected – aspect of environmental their environmental impacts and health of water in the region to pollution to the concerns. He writes about how air pollution and safety aspects are not yet clear. I suggest impact the environment has on cultural and dam construction (without a thorough how to avoid introducing new contaminant heritage to the negative environmental survey) damage unique, non-replaceable agents into the environment that might eff ects of emerging technologies. artefacts of a country’s cultural heritage. have severe unknown consequences. Particularly salient – and dominant within Hassan Arafat’s piece sheds