How did Sasanian engineers connect the Euphrates and Tigris rivers near Baghdad?

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Map showing the Tigris and Euphrates river basin and its drainage network across Turkey, Syria, and Iraq, with color shading for elevation, major dams, canals, lakes, and boundaries with neighboring countries. The green areas indicate lower elevations along the river valleys, while higher elevations are shaded in brown and orange. A small locator map in the corner shows the basin's position within the Middle East. — Tigris-Euphrates river system The Tigris and Euphrates river basin and its drainage network.

During the Sasanian period in the 3rd century CE, engineers connected the Tigris and Euphrates rivers near Baghdad by constructing five navigable canals across the narrow neck of land where the two rivers approach each other. These canals—the ʿĪsā, Ṣarṣar, Malik, Kūthā, and Shaṭṭ al-Nīl—allowed water from the Euphrates to flow into the Tigris, serving as an elaborate feat of engineering for the region.1