A widespread sandstorm is affecting five Arab countries on Monday and will continue its advance on Tuesday.

Arab Weather - Computer simulations at the Arab Weather Center indicate expectations of active to strong westerly to northwesterly winds on Monday, May 18, 2026, over several areas of the eastern Mediterranean basin, represented by Jordan and Syria, leading to the formation of a sandstorm that will start from the Syrian Desert towards the northern Arabian Peninsula, Iraq and Kuwait.

This sandstorm is expected to affect important areas, including vital roads and international routes, requiring caution while driving and adherence to safety guidelines, especially on roads connecting the Levant with Iraq and the northern Arabian Peninsula.

A sandstorm is expected to originate in the Syrian Desert and move towards northern Arabia on Monday.

God willing, on Monday, strong westerly to northwesterly winds are expected to blow across the Jordanian desert regions, desert roads, the Syrian desert regions, and the northern Arabian Peninsula, with some gusts reaching speeds of about 90-100 km/h, leading to the formation of a sandstorm and dense dust waves originating from the Syrian and Jordanian deserts towards large areas of the northern Arabian Peninsula.

The affected areas include parts of northern Saudi Arabia, including Arar, Al-Jawf and the Northern Borders region, according to the National Center for Meteorology, extending to the Eastern Province, while the effects of the sandstorm will later extend towards Kuwait and Iraq.

The sandstorm is also expected to affect a number of important international roads, including the Baghdad International Road linking the Jordanian capital Amman with the Iraqi capital Baghdad, as well as border crossings and the roads leading to them, in addition to many main roads in neighboring countries.

Strong winds are expected to return on Tuesday, with continued chances of sandstorms.

God willing, on Tuesday, strong winds are expected to resume in the same areas mentioned above, leading to the formation of more dust waves that will affect large areas of the Syrian Desert, Iraq and Kuwait, in addition to several parts of the Arabian Peninsula, especially Saudi Arabia, according to data from the National Center for Meteorology.

These weather conditions are expected to cause a significant decrease and possibly a complete loss of horizontal visibility in some areas, which necessitates taking the necessary precautions, especially by patients with respiratory and eye conditions, in addition to the need to drive with extreme caution on desert and international roads.

And God knows best.