DAMASCUS — The Syrian government will shut down state agencies for two days in December due to fuel shortages caused by supply chain disruption and Western sanctions, state media reported Tuesday.
The decision to close the institutions on December 11 and 18 has been made at a time when many employees cannot get to work because the shortage has affected public transport.
In recent weeks, fuel shortages have paralyzed government-held parts of Syria in one of the most serious crises since the internal conflict began 11 years ago. The crisis has affected almost all sectors, since fuels are needed for the generators that supply power to factories, telecommunication networks and other institutions.
The fuel crisis was one of the causes of large demonstrations in the Druze-majority province of Sweida, in which a protester and a police officer were killed and seven people were injured.
Also, many people depend on heating oil in the winter season. On Monday, the Ministry of Domestic Trade doubled prices to 5,400 pounds (93 cents) a liter for diesel and 4,900 pounds (84 cents) a liter for gasoline.
The price of subsidized fuel did not change, and each vehicle is entitled to 25 liters every 10 days, but recently that amount is only available every 20 days.