By Zana al-Ali
RAQQA, Syria (North Press) – While spending time watching a match between Syria and India, Abdullah sits with his son who used to help him in buying and selling in Raqqa Governorate, north Syria. They have no work to do as they are unemployed.
Muhammad Abdullah, 45, a pseudonym for the owner of a grocery store in Saif al-Dawla Street in central Raqqa. “We were very busy a week ago, but now as you see, we are unemployed,” Abdullah said.
The merchant described business in Raqqa as going through a phase of “stagnation”.
He said, “Two weeks ago, sales and purchases in the store used to exceed $5,000 per day, but now they hardly reach $500 a week.”
The merchant emphasized that the primary reasons for this stagnation are the lack of security stability in the region, directly impacting purchasing power of population.
As Turkish airstrikes continue, Abdullah fears the loss of essential supplies in the market, which come through the Semalka crossing that is the only gateway for trade from the Kurdistan Region of Iraq (KRI) to northeastern Syria.
Since the beginning of 2024, northeastern Syria has witnessed instability due to Turkey targeting 89 sites on Jan. 15 with 122 strikes, including 62 by drones and 22 by warplanes.
Turkish airstrikes focused on electricity and fuel production, as well as posts of the Internal Security Forces of North and East Syria (Asayish) and the Syrian government forces.
Diesel is crucial for Economy
Ali Muhammad, 35, an owner of Ali Furniture Trading Group on al-Qitar Street, northern Raqqa, said, “The loss and rising prices of essential materials like diesel have led to a multiplication of items’ prices,” Muhammad said.
“Residents are afraid of buying anything due to the Turkish airstrikes that affected northern Syria,” he added.
“When a shell falls, it will be enough to suspend business in the area. So, whenever Turkey starts its airstrikes, our customers disappear,” he said.
In Raqqa, there is a diesel crisis and its prices are soaring. Diesel is crucial, as vehicles depend on it for transportation.
The price of a liter of unsubsidized diesel in Raqqa has amounted to 9,000 SYP (about $0.60). The subsidized diesel is not available at all at the gas stations of the Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (AANES).
War Crimes
“The Turkish airstrikes targeted oil and power stations as well as the region’s only gas station, leading to resource losses,” the AANES said in a previous statement to North Press.
The AANES described the attacks as war crimes, calling on the international community and humanitarian organizations to intervene and halt the Turkish assaults.
Khurshid Aliko, an economic expert, emphasized that Turkey’s targeting of vital infrastructure worsened the situation, rendering it as a stricken area.
The expert told North Press that the dire situation will negatively impact the residents due to declines in oil, gas, and electricity production.
Aliko believes that Turkey aims to hinder the AANES and its institutions from utilizing available resources for budgeting and service provision, attempting to portray the AANES as incapable in administrating its regions.