An intense dust storm is spreading sands from Syria to the Iraq.

The dust is blowing north out of the Syrian Desert in Iraq, Syria and Kuwait.
dust storm
Dust storm over Syria

Though the color matches the ground, the airborne dust is brighter and smoother in texture, which makes it stand out in the image. The dust blankets the land between the Euphrates River in the east and the Tigris River in the west - the region that nurtured some of the earliest human civilizations.