Reports | 25 05 2020
The holy month of Ramadan in the city of Aleppo this year, carried none of its habitual rituals or distinctive character. The rising prices of food and fuel, combined with the frequent interruptions of water and electricity; which also coincided with a rise in temperatures were the culprits.
Some Aleppans interviewed by Rozana, actually confirmed that Ramadan this year is much harder than in previous years. Mohammed, for example, comments: "We were used—especially in the early days of Ramadan—to cook delicious meals and prepare for breaking the fast. Unfortunately, with the exorbitant prices we were unable to bring anything this year."
Umm Ahmad has four children, and she complains about the high prices of food and vegetables. She says: "We canceled our subscription to the electricity generator when its owner quadrupled the price of one Amp. We as adults, no longer care for ourselves—but these children, what is their fault?"
High fuel prices and lack of availability has become a real threat to the city, after the supply routes from the north and east were interrupted due to the battles between the Syrian opposition factions and ISIS in the northern countryside.
A generator owner tells Rozana: "This generator used to serve about 15 families—but this was previously, when the price of a barrel of diesel was only 25 thousand [Syrian] pounds. Now that the price of a barrel has reached almost 90 thousand, I stopped operating the generator."
High prices have crept into every small detail of daily life in Aleppo. Even the price of the cool ice slabs which Aleppans use as the main alternative to cool their drinking water—particularly in Ramadan, due to power outages and high temperatures—has reached more than one thousand Syrian pounds.
Field hospitals and civil defense teams also received their share of suffering, with most of their vehicles and equipment depending on fuel and electricity for their operation.
Baybars Meshaal, leader of the Civil Defence Regiment in the city of Aleppo, warned of civil defense cars and equipment coming out of service within the coming few days, as "the price of a barrel of diesel is about 100 thousand [Syrian] pounds—money that we simply do not have to operate."