Iraq braces for hotter weather from start of July

BAGHDAD — Iraq’s heat will hold for the next few days and then climb further from July 1, the General Authority for Meteorology said Monday, with the south bearing the worst of it.

The southern governorates of Dhi Qar, Basra and Maysan are expected to record the country’s highest temperatures, the authority’s forecasting department said.

Skies will stay sunny on Monday and temperatures close to Sunday’s, the authority said, with hot to very hot conditions through the day, peaking around midday, and some relief overnight. Northwesterly winds are forecast at 20 to 30 km/h, easing to calm spells in parts of the north, and visibility between 8 and 10 km.

The sharper heat sets in from July 1, the authority said, the start of a hotter spell across much of Iraq.