Like land, water's link with conflict lies deep in history, as over the centuries societies have fought to protect access to, and sources of, water supply. In modern times, the increasing diversification in its uses has further increased the ways through which water has been linked to politics, conflict, and diplomacy. For Africans, the importance of the resource is further reinforced by its sociocultural and religious significance, as the sources of major rivers have been known to serve as deities through which people engage in communion with the supreme being. There are, however, ways in which water differs from other natural resources discussed in this book, and these serve to underlie the peculiarities of the resource's linkage with conflict. First, unlike other resources, water offers very limited opportunity for individual ownership or control.