The Syrian Observatory For Human Rights

Regime-held areas | Power shortages force residents to use primitive cooking and water filling methods

As regime-held areas are hit by electricity and fuel crises, many Syrians have been forced to use primitive cooking and water filling methods, such as using logs and torn fabrics for cooking and extracting water manually from artesian wells.

This deteriorating situation coincides with the hike of gas cylinder price in the duty-free stores to 30,000 Syrian pounds, equivalent to 8.5 USD, while the state-subsidized price of a gas cylinder is 10,000 SYL each, 3 USD. It is worth noting that every family can get only one gas cylinder at the state-subsidized price a month.

Moreover, people in regime-held areas are struggling with frequent power cuts for long hours daily, as electricity is available for only one hour every six hours under “rationing hours” policy. While, in some rural areas, rationing hours reach ten.

Furthermore, chronic crises in regime-held areas, such as unaffordable prices of essential products, shortage of fuel and bread, poor transportation services, lack of job opportunities, and increasing security chaos have been worsening even more due to the sanctions imposed on Syria under “Caesar Act”. While the Syrian regime continues inaction and is still unable to put an end to these crises.

 

We, at the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, warn against the repercussions of escalating living crises in regime-held areas with the Syrian regime clinging only to power, disregarding the sufferings of the Syrian people. We also renew our appeal to the international community to exert extra efforts to reach a workable solutions to save the lives and safety of millions of Syrian people who have already been grappling with chronic crises during Syria’s protracted war which has been raging for over a decade.