As Turkish lira continues to plummet in value, Syrians in rebel-held Idlib are rushing to buy household staples before prices rise sharply.
People in the neighbourhood of Kafr Takhareem have described queuing for hours outside shops.
What was intended to be a quick errand for Ihsan Naseef turned into a two-hour wait outside his local supermarket.
“I just need to pick up at least two months of groceries and supplies for my wife and three children as I’m sure the prices will continue to soar in the days to come,” the maths teacher, 42, told The National via WhatsApp.
Idlib, the last remaining stronghold controlled by forces opposed to President Bashar Al Assad, adopted the Turkish currency last year as an alternative to the Syrian pound, which plummeted significantly after 10 years of civil war.
But the lira has now lost more than 20 per cent of its dollar value since the start of the year, leading to a reduced standard of living in Turkey as it costs more to buy goods. The exchange rate today hovers around 14 liras for US $1.
This bodes ill for the people of Idlib, as business owners have to charge more for imported commodities. It even beats the most pessimistic forecasts among Syrian retailers.
Prices rise
“It costs me around three liras for one kilo of potatoes and I sell it in the local market here for four liras now. It used to be 3.5 liras last month,” said Wael Hussein, a vegetable importer and owner of a supermarket.
There is no official data from the Central Bank of Syria or statistics authority on the inflation rate in the opposition-held Idlib. But retailers like Mr Hussein believe it to be in the region of 20-40 per cent based on official and unofficial data in neighbouring Turkey.
On average, prices have gone up by 50 per cent over the past six months.
For the most part of this year, people were understanding and relatively calm. But patience has started to grow thin over the last month.
“It’s crazy that some traders started charging inflated prices for anything from vegetables to TV sets,” fumed Mr Naseef.
“A whole chicken now costs around 15 liras. A few months ago, it used to be six or seven liras. We aren’t talking here about saving for summer holidays as many people do around the world, we just want to make ends meet and feed our families.”
Dependent on lira as Syria's currency crumbles
The Hayat Tahrir Al Sham (HTC)-affiliated government in Idlib said in the past that the adoption of the Turkish lira was not only a sign of support and gratitude to Turkey after its intervention in the “liberated areas” but an economic decision as the Syrian pound became all but worthless.
All employees in the self-declared government in Idlib take their salaries in Turkish lira, including HTC fighters. The average monthly salary bracket is around 500-800 liras ($37-59).
HTC, which controls Idlib, did not respond to a request for comment on what it is doing to control prices.
The Syrian government in Damascus has rejected what it calls persistent attempts by “Turkish occupation in the north to impose its hegemony over the national economy”.
Between 2016 and now, Turkey has launched four cross-border military operations against Kurdish-led forces in northern Syria.
The rise in prices is fuelling panic buying, locals say, an act that can further drive up prices and make essential goods a rarity.
“In Idlib, the authorities are facing a major drive in inflation, small businesses are struggling to temper fluctuating product prices and import costs and its citizens will face high prices for fuel, food (particularly wheat) and other basic services and products,” Caroline Rose, a senior analyst and head of the Power Vacuums programme in the human security unit at the Newlines Institute, told The National.
Ms Rose said the Syrian economy was already closely intertwined with the Lebanese economy and banking system, something that has induced further economic strain in the country, hitting business activity, spending patterns, food security and financial conditions heavily.
“Unfortunately, there are not many alternatives for Idlib authorities, other than trying to adjust to these new price shocks, weak purchasing power, wage devaluation and advocating for increased humanitarian aid that could help offset these difficult challenges,” she said.
Since 2011, the Turkish Red Crescent (Kizilay) has delivered 55,000 lorries of aid to Syria.
Turkish officials say this aid has amounted to 3.5bn Turkish lira ($281m).
The United Nations says 13.4 million people inside Syria are in need of humanitarian assistance, including six million in acute need. More than 12 million were struggling to find enough food each day and 500,000 children were chronically malnourished.
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
One in nine do not have enough to eat
Created in 1961, the World Food Programme is pledged to fight hunger worldwide as well as providing emergency food assistance in a crisis.
One of the organisation’s goals is the Zero Hunger Pledge, adopted by the international community in 2015 as one of the 17 Sustainable Goals for Sustainable Development, to end world hunger by 2030.
The WFP, a branch of the United Nations, is funded by voluntary donations from governments, businesses and private donations.
Almost two thirds of its operations currently take place in conflict zones, where it is calculated that people are more than three times likely to suffer from malnutrition than in peaceful countries.
It is currently estimated that one in nine people globally do not have enough to eat.
On any one day, the WFP estimates that it has 5,000 lorries, 20 ships and 70 aircraft on the move.
Outside emergencies, the WFP provides school meals to up to 25 million children in 63 countries, while working with communities to improve nutrition. Where possible, it buys supplies from developing countries to cut down transport cost and boost local economies.
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Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
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MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League, last 16, first leg
Liverpool v Bayern Munich, midnight (Wednesday), BeIN Sports
Milestones on the road to union
1970
October 26: Bahrain withdraws from a proposal to create a federation of nine with the seven Trucial States and Qatar.
December: Ahmed Al Suwaidi visits New York to discuss potential UN membership.
1971
March 1: Alex Douglas Hume, Conservative foreign secretary confirms that Britain will leave the Gulf and “strongly supports” the creation of a Union of Arab Emirates.
July 12: Historic meeting at which Sheikh Zayed and Sheikh Rashid make a binding agreement to create what will become the UAE.
July 18: It is announced that the UAE will be formed from six emirates, with a proposed constitution signed. RAK is not yet part of the agreement.
August 6: The fifth anniversary of Sheikh Zayed becoming Ruler of Abu Dhabi, with official celebrations deferred until later in the year.
August 15: Bahrain becomes independent.
September 3: Qatar becomes independent.
November 23-25: Meeting with Sheikh Zayed and Sheikh Rashid and senior British officials to fix December 2 as date of creation of the UAE.
November 29: At 5.30pm Iranian forces seize the Greater and Lesser Tunbs by force.
November 30: Despite a power sharing agreement, Tehran takes full control of Abu Musa.
November 31: UK officials visit all six participating Emirates to formally end the Trucial States treaties
December 2: 11am, Dubai. New Supreme Council formally elects Sheikh Zayed as President. Treaty of Friendship signed with the UK. 11.30am. Flag raising ceremony at Union House and Al Manhal Palace in Abu Dhabi witnessed by Sheikh Khalifa, then Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi.
December 6: Arab League formally admits the UAE. The first British Ambassador presents his credentials to Sheikh Zayed.
December 9: UAE joins the United Nations.
DUBAI WORLD CUP CARNIVAL CARD
6.30pm Handicap US$135,000 (Turf) 2,410m
7.05pm UAE 1000 Guineas Listed $250,000 (Dirt) 1,600m
7.40pm Dubai Dash Listed $175,000 (T) 1,000m
8.15pm Al Bastakiya Trial Conditions $100,000 (D) 1.900m
8.50pm Al Fahidi Fort Group Two $250,000 (T) 1,400m
9.25pm Handicap $135,000 (D) 2,000m
The National selections
6.30pm: Gifts Of Gold
7.05pm Final Song
7.40pm Equilateral
8.15pm Dark Of Night
8.50pm Mythical Magic
9.25pm Franz Kafka
Our legal consultant
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
Earth under attack: Cosmic impacts throughout history
- 4.5 billion years ago: Mars-sized object smashes into the newly-formed Earth, creating debris that coalesces to form the Moon
- 66 million years ago: 10km-wide asteroid crashes into the Gulf of Mexico, wiping out over 70 per cent of living species – including the dinosaurs.
- 50,000 years ago: 50m-wide iron meteor crashes in Arizona with the violence of 10 megatonne hydrogen bomb, creating the famous 1.2km-wide Barringer Crater
- 1490: Meteor storm over Shansi Province, north-east China when large stones “fell like rain”, reportedly leading to thousands of deaths.
- 1908: 100-metre meteor from the Taurid Complex explodes near the Tunguska river in Siberia with the force of 1,000 Hiroshima-type bombs, devastating 2,000 square kilometres of forest.
- 1998: Comet Shoemaker-Levy 9 breaks apart and crashes into Jupiter in series of impacts that would have annihilated life on Earth.
-2013: 10,000-tonne meteor burns up over the southern Urals region of Russia, releasing a pressure blast and flash that left over 1600 people injured.
Learn more about Qasr Al Hosn
In 2013, The National's History Project went beyond the walls to see what life was like living in Abu Dhabi's fabled fort:
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FIXTURES (all times UAE)
Sunday
Brescia v Lazio (3.30pm)
SPAL v Verona (6pm)
Genoa v Sassuolo (9pm)
AS Roma v Torino (11.45pm)
Monday
Bologna v Fiorentina (3.30pm)
AC Milan v Sampdoria (6pm)
Juventus v Cagliari (6pm)
Atalanta v Parma (6pm)
Lecce v Udinese (9pm)
Napoli v Inter Milan (11.45pm)
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Kumulus Water
Started: 2021
Founders: Iheb Triki and Mohamed Ali Abid
Based: Tunisia
Sector: Water technology
Number of staff: 22
Investment raised: $4 million
What can victims do?
Always use only regulated platforms
Stop all transactions and communication on suspicion
Save all evidence (screenshots, chat logs, transaction IDs)
Report to local authorities
Warn others to prevent further harm
Courtesy: Crystal Intelligence
Lexus LX700h specs
Engine: 3.4-litre twin-turbo V6 plus supplementary electric motor
Power: 464hp at 5,200rpm
Torque: 790Nm from 2,000-3,600rpm
Transmission: 10-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 11.7L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh590,000
Favourite book: ‘The Art of Learning’ by Josh Waitzkin
Favourite film: Marvel movies
Favourite parkour spot in Dubai: Residence towers in Jumeirah Beach Residence
