The largest protests since the overthrow of Bashar al-Assad have broken out in Syria. The reason was the authorities' decision to raise fuel prices.
On Sunday, September 13, the Syrian government announced a 40% increase in the price of diesel fuel and a 28% increase in the price of gasoline.
The government said this was a temporary increase caused by rising prices for oil and petroleum products on the world market. The government cited a shutdown to modernize the Baniyas refinery, the largest of Syria's two refineries, as another reason.
Syrian Energy Minister Mohammed al-Bashir said on Saturday that Syria now produces only 102 thousand barrels of oil per day, and consumes 325 thousand. Therefore, the country is forced to import fuel.
In response to the government’s decision, many residents of the country, confident that the price of fuel would raise all other prices, took to the streets, began burning tires and blocking highways.
Reports of protests on Monday came from the cities of Hama, Khan Sheikhoun and Maarat al-Numan on the highway leading through Aleppo into Turkey, Azaz and al-Bab near Damascus, from Raqqa, Deir ez-Zor and Hasakah in the eastern part of the country, from Qamishli in the northeast, in Syrian Kurdistan and other places.
BBC Verify, the BBC's fact-checking service, verified and verified the authenticity of videos of riots at two border posts: one on the border with Iraq, the other on the border with Turkey.
An AFP correspondent reports from Qamishli that hundreds of people came out to protest in this city. They held posters in their hands: “No to the policy of hunger!”, “No to increasing fuel prices!” and chanted “Fuel is for the people!”
“This is the wrong decision! This decision is against farmers, workers and students - against all the poor people of Syria,” 56-year-old local resident Abdul Rahman Khalil told the agency.
Taxi drivers in Damascus explained in detail to Reuters correspondents what the jump in fuel prices means for them and other residents of the country.
“Yesterday I filled 10 liters of gasoline for 185 thousand [old Syrian pounds, the pound was denominated a hundred times earlier this year - BBC], I earned 225 thousand for the whole day. So what did I get? I brought home 20-25 thousand,” taxi driver Mohammed told Reuters. 25 thousand old Syrian pounds, or 250 new ones - that's less than two dollars.
“This means that I only earned money for gasoline. “I didn’t work for myself,” Mohammed continued. - Solution? The decision is in the hands of the government. We need it to urgently decide something, because we, drivers, we eat, drink, we have other expenses.”
“Now gasoline prices have increased, diesel prices have increased. Tomorrow vegetables will become more expensive, food will become more expensive. To be honest, you can’t live like that, you can’t live at all. Find a way out with these prices, let people live, let people eat!” — another taxi driver, Imad Abu-Ras, told the agency.
“I have five children. I need five packs of tortillas every day,” Imad continued. “If the price of flatbread tomorrow rises to nine thousand [old Syrian pounds, 68 American cents], then I will spend 40 thousand [$3] on bread.” This means that for a month we need a million pounds [$75.76] just for bread.”
Economists confirm Syrians' fears that the retail price of fuel will push up other prices.
“The problem of fuel prices in Syria is not just a debate about the price of a liter of gasoline or diesel, and not just a financial decision, the latest in a series of price increases,” Arab News quoted Syrian economist Hassan Murad as saying. “It becomes a much broader issue affecting future production, transportation costs, food prices, purchasing power of citizens, business profitability, employment, investment, right down to the ability of the Syrian economy to recover and rebuild.”
