Iraq sandstorm closes airports, puts 3,700 people in hospital

A sandstorm swept through Iraq, filling the air with choking dust that closed airports and put more than 3,700 people in hospital with breathing difficulties, the health ministry said Tuesday.

Visibility fell to less than one kilometre (barely half a mile) in central and southern cities as the storm cloaked the region in an eerie orange haze, AFP photographers reported.

Basra and Najaf airports both closed for the duration of the storm, which began to dissipate on Tuesday morning.

Health…