Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said on July 3 that certain major dam projects on the Euphrates and Tigris rivers have ravaged water resources, according to AFP and RFE/RL. He made the comments in Tehran during a regional conference on sandstorms, which are sometimes caused by dried out river beds.

Turkey, Iran, Iraqi Kurdistan and Afghanistan have recently started swapping accusations over several dam projects affecting water resources.

Rouhani is essentially demanding that Turkey halts the construction of two new dams on the major rivers, saying that they were “dangerous” for the entire region.

Although he did not name Turkey, the country is the latest regional actor to increase its funding to build hydroelectric dams. Syrian Kurds in February accused Turkey of cutting off water supplies to the Euphrates River as a form of political pressure. Turkey's control of the headwaters of the Euphrates and Tigris rivers is a controversial point in the Middle East.

Meanwhile, Iraqi Kurdistan this week lambasted Iran for damming another river which feeds into one of its waterways.

Iran has verbally attacked Afghanistan on several occasions over dams, saying it had practically blocked water flowing to Iran’s Sistan and Baluchistan region.

Due to the considerable amounts of sunlight in the region and low rainfall, river beds have dried out and huge sand storms have become a regular occurrence, even in Tehran.