The word haboob comes from the Arabic word هبوب "strong wind or 'phenomenon'."
A haboob is a type of intense sandstorm commonly observed in the Sahara desert, as well as throughout Kuwait, and in the most arid regions of Iraq. In the United States, they are frequently observed in the deserts of Arizona outside of Phoenix.
During thunderstorm formation, winds move in a direction opposite to the storm's travel, and they will move from all directions into the thunderstorm. When the storm collapses and begins to release precipitation, wind directions reverse, gusting outward from the storm and generally gusting the strongest in the direction of the storm's travel.
When this downdraft, or downburst, reaches the ground, dry, loose sand from the desert settings is essentially blown up, creating a wall. This wall of sand can be up to 60 miles wide and a few miles in high. At their strongest, haboob winds can travel at 20-30 mph and they may approach with little to no warning and can create zero visibility!
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