The source of future Middle East conflict?

Will aquifers be a source of future conflict in the Middle East region? This UNESCO map suggests it might well become so:

New Scientist reports:

The increasing reliance on aquifer groundwater - because there is more of it and it tends to be less contaminated by industrial run-off - has been called the "groundwater revolution".

But it is a revolution with worrying environmental consequences. In many parts of the world, around the Mediterranean for example, but also in the US and the Middle East, water tables are falling and aquifers are being infiltrated by seawater as agricultural practices pump water out faster than it can be replenished by rain.

When aquifers fall between countries, sustainable management requires international agreement. Yet, historically, many agreements have been weighted towards the richest or more powerful country.

The most well-known example of this is the 1995 agreement between the Israeli and Palestinian authorities. This granted Israel rights to 90% of the water contained in four aquifers (and the Jordan river) which span both territories.