Northern Africa

Units of the Moroccan army destroy the wells situated in the municipalities of Guelta and Boujdour. Citizens usually use these wells to provide water for their sheep in the summer.

Angry protests take place in various communities of Ain Berda province, Algeria over gas, water and electricity shortages. Youths build barricades and block roads during these demonstrations.

During the 2011 Libyan Civil War, forces loyal to dictator Muammar Gaddafi gain control of a water operations center and cut off water supply to the capital. The system controls Libya’s Great Manmade River”a system of pumps, pipes, and canals that brings water from distant aquifers to Tripoli and other cities. Half the country is left without running water, prompting the UN and neighboring countries to mobilize tanker ships to deliver water to coastal cities.

Egypt sends an unsuccessful military expedition into disputed territory amidst pending negotiations over the Nile waters, Sudanese general elections, and an Egyptian vote on Sudan-Egypt unification; Nile Water Treaty signed when pro-Egyptian government elected in Sudan.

Fighting around Malakal, in South Sudan, displaces thousands and leaves many dead. A military checkpoint and water pipeline to the United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) compound and nearby Protection of Civilians area are targeted and destroyed.

NATO bombs a plant that builds pipelines for the Great Manmade River project that carries water from southern groundwater to coastal cities. Major water networks are disrupted in this conflict, which affects access to safe drinking water, sanitation, and hygiene throughout Libya. Armed groups attack water wells cutting off water to civilians.

At least 70 people have been killed in the past few months in clashes between farmers and herders over access to water resources and land in the southern part of Darfur.

Around 60 Islamic State militants raid the Great Manmade River (GMR) project station in Ash Shwayrif, southwest of Sirte. This system provides water to the Libyan Sahara and the northern cities of Benghazi, Sirte, and Tripoli.

Demonstrations in Juba, Sudan in 1978 opposing the construction of the Jonglei Canal lead to the deaths of two students. Construction of the Jonglei Canal in the Sudan is suspended in 1984 following a series of attacks on the construction site.

Water for the capital of Libya, Tripoli is disrupted by an attack in southern Libya on a pumping station for the country’s ‘Great Man Made River’ by militants loyal to former Libyan leader Muammar al-Gaddafi.