Is war one of the biggest threats to the world’s climate? | Inside Story

Speaking at this year's COP30 in Brazil, UN chief Antonio Guterres called the inability to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius a "deadly moral failure". But does the same apply when it comes protecting the environment in conflict? Israel's two-year genocide on Gaza has created 61 million tons of rubble, with nearly a quarter contaminated with asbestos and other hazardous materials. And scientists warn Israel's use of water, food, and energy as weapons of war in the strip has left farmland and ecosystems facing irreversible collapse. In Syria, President Ahmed al-Sharaa has cited his country’s worst drought in more than six decades as evidence of accelerating climate change, and warned it could hinder the country's post-war recovery. So why isn’t conflict seen as a climate issue and why is the environmental toll of war so often ignored? Presenter: Adrian Finighan Guests: Kate Mackintosh - Deputy Chair of Independent Expert Panel for the legal definition of Ecocide Elaine Donderer - a disaster risk specialist. Farai Maguwu - Director of the Centre for Natural Resource Governance. Subscribe to our channel: http://bit.ly/AJSubscribe Follow us on X: https://twitter.com/AJEnglish Find us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/aljazeera Check our website: http://www.aljazeera.com/ Check out our Instagram page: https://www.instagram.com/aljazeeraenglish/ Download AJE Mobile App: https://aje.io/AJEMobile #COP30 #Brazil #AntonioGuterres #ClimateChange #ClimateCrisis #ClimateJustice #Ecocide #GazaWar #RussiaUkraineWar #SudanWar #Environment #UN #EnvironmentalDestruction #PublicHealth #HumanitarianCrisis #Pollution #ToxicWasteland #AlJazeeraEnglish