Page 8 - MEOG Week 10 2021
P. 8
MEOG PIPELINES & TRANSPORT MEOG
Syrian oil facilities in the
crosshairs as attacks continue
SYRIA OIL facilities across Syria continue to be the Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), which loyal to
target of strikes from the numerous factions the Syrian Salvation Government in Idlib City.
involved in the country’s long-running civil Prices for these cargoes are influenced by move-
conflict. ments in the dollar/Turkish lira exchange rate.
An attack was carried out on makeshift refin- Meanwhile, sources said that there are two
eries at the towns of al-Bab and Jarabulus in companies competing to supply Idlib, both from
the northern Aleppo Province, though there is Turkey and from SDF-held areas.
uncertainty about the identity of the aggressor Watad Petrol, which is owned by HTS, and
and the number of victims. Imdad, owned by the Turkey-aligned Free Syr-
The UK-based Syrian Observatory for ian Army (FSA) in the surrounding country-
Human Rights said that the attacks had been side. Prices for these cargoes are influenced by
launched from Russian warships and Syrian the profiteering of the traders and smugglers
government forces, killing four and injuring 24 involved.
others. The report said that fires had spread to The SDF has been accused of planting explo-
around 180 oil tankers, noting that the fires were sives on roads around Raqqa and Hasakah in
the “largest yet from a missile attack on make- eastern Syria that connect its territory with Tur-
shift refineries”. key and with the areas held by the FSA.
It added that unidentified drones had also hit Al-Monitor quoted an FSA official as say-
oil refineries in Turkish-held areas of Aleppo in ing: “Oil coming from the SDF-controlled areas
January, causing a large fire. enters through two points. At Tufaha, south of
Meanwhile, Reuters quoted a source within Suluk, under the control of Ahrar al-Sharqiya
the Turkish-backed National Army who said faction, and at al-Rihaniya, south of Ras al-Ain
that the death toll was one, with at least another held by the Hamza Division.”
11 injured, while Turkish state-media outlet He added that given the importance of oil
Anadolu Agency quoted a witness as saying that revenues to the SDF, it “does not want oil supplies
18 people had been injured. It added that it could to exit its areas without its knowledge”.
not confirm the source of the attack. In late February, two men were killed when
the diesel truck they were driving hit a landmine
Booby traps near a smuggling point on the Aleppo-Hasakah
Also last week, Washington-based Al-Monitor highway north-east of Raqqa.
quoted various sources within Syria as saying Meanwhile, Hassan al-Layli, military com-
that the Kurdish Syrian Democratic Forces mander of the FSA-affiliated Sultan al-Murad
(SDF) have taken to routinely booby-trapping Division, was quoted as saying that “lorries could
fuel trucks and smuggling route roads as it seeks have been also booby-trapped to be detonated in
to control the oil fuel flows that are its key source the opposition areas, but blew up before they got
of income. to their destination. Both possibilities are valid,
The report said that the area under control of and we can’t be sure of what happened exactly, as
the Syrian opposition in the north of the coun- all vehicles were blown up before reaching their
try is facing fuel shortages as smugglers seek to destination to the areas under our control.” The
profit from large variances in oil prices and the SDF refused to comment.
SDF looks to exert its control over flows. Separately, in late February, an attack was
It said that gas, gasoline and diesel are carried out on the al-Jabsa-al-Rayyan pipeline
imported to opposition-held territory in Idlib in the Abu Khashab area of Deir Ezzor Province,
Province from Turkey across the Bab al-Hawa which is home to much of the country’s oil and
crossing under the control of the jihadist militia gas reserves.
P8 www. NEWSBASE .com Week 10 10•March•2021