Raid in the Eastern Badia
Internal security forces raided a cluster of makeshift oil refineries in the desert near the village of Al-Jasmi, north of Deir Ezzor province, on 15 June 2026. Officers destroyed several of the primitive burners with gunfire and detained one worker at the site.
It was not the first such operation against the gathering, which had been targeted before and whose operators had already been ordered to halt work for good.
A Drive to Control Oil
After the government extended its authority over northeastern Syria, an area formerly held by the Syrian Democratic Forces, it ordered an end to primitive refining in the region's oil fields. Authorities say the makeshift burners feed theft from wells and release toxic emissions that harm nearby residents.
Security units have also been striking the tanker trucks used to siphon crude, casting the crackdown as a step to rein in smuggling and impose order on a sector that operated outside state control for years.
Subsidized Fuel Pledged
The head of the state petroleum company said the aim is to bring resources under control while supplying all petroleum derivatives at subsidized prices. He added that the state would intensify services and development support for the region so that aid reaches its intended recipients rather than being lost to smuggling.
On 21 May 2026, the company announced interviews to screen the burner workers and absorb them into official oil facilities, alongside settling outstanding payments owed to the sites' owners.
Livelihoods at Stake
The closures have drawn objections from workers who depend on the burners and want an alternative income before they are pushed out. One laborer said he had no other work and could not qualify for a government job because he left school in 2013 and holds no certificate.
The trade sustains a chain of families, from those who run the burners to oil haulers, transporters, fuel vendors and cleaners, making any sudden shutdown a direct threat to household incomes across the area.