Opinion: Weaponising Water

Oct 14, 2024 | Hanna Sunny and Karamala Areesh Kumar
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Throughout history, water has been strategically employed as a potent political tool in conflicts and disputes between nations. This has often involved deliberate attacks on critical water infrastructure, including pipelines, storage tanks, dams, irrigation networks and natural water sources, as a means to exert control or weaken adversaries.

This strategic use of water in warfare dates back to 52 BC during Julius Caesar’s Siege of Alesia when he cut off water supply to the Gallic oppidum, forcing its inhabitants into surrender. Tensions around the Indus, Brahmaputra, and Danube rivers, as well as the Nile dispute, demonstrate how conflicts over water supplies still arise in the modern world. The manipulation of water resources has proven to be a deadly tactic as aggression has grown, underscoring the critical role that water plays in both sustaining and ending human life.