The Middle East steppe ecoregion (WWF ID: PA0812) stretches in an arc from southern Jordan across Syria and Iraq to the western border of Iran.

Evidence is that this region was once more of a forest-steppe, but centuries of overgrazing and gathering firewood have reduced tree and grass cover to small areas and along the riverine corridors.

Despite the degraded condition of the steppe environment, the ecoregion is important for water birds as the rivers and reservoirs provide habitat in the arid region.

[1][2][3][4] Most of the ecoregion is in upper Syria and Iraq, with a thin extension through western Jordan that almost reaches the Gulf of Aqaba in the south, and almost touching the border with Iran in the east.

In deep, non-saline soils the dominant shrubs are white wormwood (Artemisia herba-alba), associated with bulbous bluegrass (Poa bulbosa).