Iraq is currently facing one of its driest summers on record. 2018 was the driest year ever recorded due to a lack of rainfall, and 2021 is not far behind. Recent years’ droughts have wreaked havoc on the land in Syria, Turkey, Iran, and Iraq, but climate change is not the only driver of water shortages. Consequences of unilateral, upstream activity, water mismanagement, a lack of accountability and conflict have all exacerbated Iraq’s water crisis. The political consequences of the ongoing water emergency have worsened the regional tensions between Iraq and its neighbours and is yet another factor in the Iraqi people’s mistrust of their government, who continues to fail them and dismiss their concerns.