Road closures deepen economic crisis and burden residents

For nearly two months, Syria’s transitional government has been closing the roads leading to the Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria, most importantly the Aleppo–Deir Hafer and Salamiyah–Tabqa routes. This has choked civilian and commercial movement and brought it to a standstill.

Residents, traders in Raqqa Canton, and civil society representatives denounce the continuation of these measures, which weigh heavily on citizens, make transportation difficult, and drive up the prices of essential goods.

Citizen Rami al-Mohammad said:

"We are suffering greatly because of the road closures. We spent days out in the open waiting for the road to reopen. There are patients in urgent need of treatment, especially those with chronic illnesses such as cancer, in addition to university students and people with necessary work commitments. This situation has affected us negatively as the people of Raqqa."

Al-Mohammad called on the responsible authorities to reopen the roads leading from Raqqa to other cities and to facilitate the movement of travelers, stressing that the continued closure doubles people’s suffering.

Carpet and furnishings trader Musab Shakir Aloui, a merchant from Raqqa Canton, explained that closing key roads between North and East Syria and the rest of the country multiplies the economic burden on Syrians by 10–15%, due to the sharp rise in transport costs, delays in shipments, and damage to some goods caused by trucks being forced to take longer, more difficult routes.

Aloui noted that a trip that once took around five hours from Raqqa to Damascus via the Raqqa–Salamiyah–Damascus route, costing around 150,000 SYP, now requires traveling from Raqqa to Deir ez-Zor, then to al-Sukhna, and onward to Homs and Damascus—significantly increasing both physical strain and financial costs.

He stressed that these roads are essential humanitarian and service lifelines and should not be closed to the population, adding that there is no justification for shutting down such vital routes.

For her part, Ablah Khalil, Co-Chair of the Chambers of Commerce in North and East Syria, confirmed that residents are living under an effective siege due to the closure of the main roads.

She said that this situation fuels price increases and gives some traders the ability to manipulate the market.

She pointed out that goods that previously arrived directly from Iraq now have to go through longer, more expensive routes, which drives up their prices by the time they reach consumers.

Khalil stressed that the Chambers of Commerce in North and East Syria reject turning the people into victims of policies imposed on the region, calling for reopening the roads to ensure the flow of goods and to provide them at reasonable prices.

She added that the crisis is affecting various commodities—especially medical supplies, whose prices increase even more because of the lack of local alternatives, unlike some food products that benefit from local production.

Khalil urged humanitarian organizations to play a greater role in alleviating people’s suffering amid harsh economic conditions.

She also called on all relevant parties, both international and local, to take urgent action to reopen the roads, describing this as a humanitarian priority to help stabilize markets and support the resilience of residents.

Meanwhile, Waddah al-Jraijb, head of the Drivers’ Union in Raqqa Canton, explained that “the Syrian transitional government has closed all roads leading to the Syrian interior.” He noted that this decision “has caused public anger and has negatively affected residents, especially patients and university students.”

Al-Jraijb added: "This closure has forced travelers to take long, dangerous dirt roads filled with landmines left from the war."

He emphasized that the Drivers’ Union is calling on the transitional government to reopen the roads smoothly, responding to a popular—not administrative—demand, warning that the continuation of the current situation will lead to greater strain, particularly for patients and students, in addition to rising transport fees that further burden residents.

a.k

ANHA