https://www.ncr-iran.org/en/news/irans-lungs-on-fire-wildfires-toxic-air-and-the-politics-behind-an-environmental-collapse/
Of special interest
The Elit fire has also revived suspicions that flames sometimes serve as a prelude to “development.” This time, it is not just activists who are raising the possibility.
Reza Aflatouni, head of Iran’s Forests Organization, told state media that initial findings in the Elit case “strongly suggest a human cause” and that investigators are examining “possible connections between the fire and efforts to rezone forest and farmland for private construction.”
The governor of Mazandaran, Mehdi Younesi-Rostami, likewise confirmed that security assessments point to human activity, not lightning or spontaneous combustion.
Even state media have quoted Aflatouni warning about “land grabbing” and illegal construction on high-grade farmland in northern Iran, warning that unchecked conversion is undermining food security.
Environmental groups in Kurdistan say over 90% of rangeland fires in the province are deliberate, often linked to land seizures or military violations; a recent report put the figure as high as 99%.
It would be irresponsible to claim a single, centrally directed conspiracy. But it is equally naive to treat each fire as an isolated accident when:
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