The Hayat Tahrir Al Sham government has struck a deal to import oil and gas from areas run by a mostly Kurdish militia in east Syria, sources on both sides said on Sunday, a move that could de-escalate an ethnic conflict and competition for resources in the area which have kept the country fragmented since former president Bashar Al Assad's ouster.
An official in the administration of the north-east, which is controlled by the Kurdish-led and US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), said lorries have started transporting about 5,000 barrels per day to the central government. The oil will be used in the country's two refineries in the governorate of Homs and on the coast, he said, adding that unspecified quantity of gas will soon be flowing through the country's pipeline.
“It will help de-escalate tension with Damascus,” he said.
Oil has been a key component of the underground economy in Syria since the civil war. Its trajectory changed dramatically after the regime's removal by HTS-led forces in December. The new order is seeking to restore control in the east and tighten its grip over areas where Mr Al Assad enjoyed support.
The Syrian state news agency Sana quoted a Syrian oil ministry spokesman as saying that the new deal falls “in the interest of the Syrian people”. He said that it was drawn up for three months with the possibility of extension.
Areas that were held by the regime and are now controlled by HTS, have faced severe shortages of power and refined oil products. The situation has been better in the east due to the SDF controlling almost all of the country's oil and gas production, as well as its largest hydroelectric dam, although the infrastructure for production and transport has been in need of repair since before the civil war.
Over the last decade, the SDF has sold oil to both the former regime, and to areas controlled by HTS and rebel groups allied with Turkey in north-west Syria. Despite the infighting, each side maintained smuggling routes that helped finance them.
Syria officially produced about 400,000 barrels per day of oil in 2010, the last year before the outbreak of a pro-democracy revolt. Regime forces killed thousands of civilians in an ensuing crackdown. By the end of the year the revolt had become armed and Syria was in the midst of a civil war.
But actual oil production in 2010 was 200,000 bpd, due to a lack of investment, corruption and dire need of repair. Output is currently running at about 50,000 bpd, according to an energy sector specialist.
In 2012, the former regime started handing Kurdish militias oil and gas areas so that it could focus on maintaining its power in Damascus in the face of the armed rebellion, which came to be dominated by former Al Qaeda affiliate, HTS.
The SDF has been caught in its own conflict with Turkey since 2015. In the wake of the collapse of the former regime, Turkish proxies allied with HTS have also launched an offensive to retake parts of the east, but that front has been in a stalemate.
The SDF and HTS have been engaged in inconclusive talks aimed at handing over the east to the new order in Damascus. Last week, Ilham Ahmed, an official in an SDF political wing, told The National that the militia will not give up their weapons as long as ISIS remains active on Syrian territory.
HTS have largely stayed away from direct military fight with Kurds, as channels opened between the group and Washington. The new authorities have also been busy with other issues, including the continued existence of pro-Hezbollah elements and weapon smuggling rings on the border with Lebanon.
Late on Saturday, the Israeli army bombed areas on the border, at least the third time it had done so since Mr Al Assad's removal. The Israeli army said the raids were aimed at Hezbollah smuggling routes.
Company profile
Date started: 2015
Founder: John Tsioris and Ioanna Angelidaki
Based: Dubai
Sector: Online grocery delivery
Staff: 200
Funding: Undisclosed, but investors include the Jabbar Internet Group and Venture Friends
Desert Warrior
Starring: Anthony Mackie, Aiysha Hart, Ben Kingsley
Director: Rupert Wyatt
Rating: 3/5
Jetour T1 specs
Engine: 2-litre turbocharged
Power: 254hp
Torque: 390Nm
Price: From Dh126,000
Available: Now
Classification of skills
A worker is categorised as skilled by the MOHRE based on nine levels given in the International Standard Classification of Occupations (ISCO) issued by the International Labour Organisation.
A skilled worker would be someone at a professional level (levels 1 – 5) which includes managers, professionals, technicians and associate professionals, clerical support workers, and service and sales workers.
The worker must also have an attested educational certificate higher than secondary or an equivalent certification, and earn a monthly salary of at least Dh4,000.
GAC GS8 Specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo
Power: 248hp at 5,200rpm
Torque: 400Nm at 1,750-4,000rpm
Transmission: 8-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 9.1L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh149,900
Meghan%20podcast
%3Cp%3EMeghan%20Markle%2C%20the%20wife%20of%20Prince%20Harry%2C%20launched%20her%20long-awaited%20podcast%20Tuesday%2C%20with%20tennis%20megastar%20Serena%20Williams%20as%20the%20first%20guest.%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3EThe%20Duchess%20of%20Sussex%20said%20the%2012-part%20series%2C%20called%20%22Archetypes%2C%22%20--%20a%20play%20on%20the%20name%20of%20the%20couple's%20oldest%20child%2C%20Archie%20--%20would%20explore%20the%20female%20experience.%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3ELast%20year%20the%20couple%20told%20Oprah%20Winfrey%20that%20life%20inside%20%22The%20Firm%22%20had%20been%20miserable%2C%20and%20that%20they%20had%20experienced%20racism.%26nbsp%3B%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%22I%20don't%20ever%20remember%20personally%20feeling%20the%20negative%20connotation%20behind%20the%20word%20ambitious%2C%20until%20I%20started%20dating%20my%20now-husband%2C%22%20she%20told%20the%20tennis%20champion.%26nbsp%3B%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4-cylturbo
Transmission: seven-speed DSG automatic
Power: 242bhp
Torque: 370Nm
Price: Dh136,814
Trump v Khan
2016: Feud begins after Khan criticised Trump’s proposed Muslim travel ban to US
2017: Trump criticises Khan’s ‘no reason to be alarmed’ response to London Bridge terror attacks
2019: Trump calls Khan a “stone cold loser” before first state visit
2019: Trump tweets about “Khan’s Londonistan”, calling him “a national disgrace”
2022: Khan’s office attributes rise in Islamophobic abuse against the major to hostility stoked during Trump’s presidency
July 2025 During a golfing trip to Scotland, Trump calls Khan “a nasty person”
Sept 2025 Trump blames Khan for London’s “stabbings and the dirt and the filth”.
Dec 2025 Trump suggests migrants got Khan elected, calls him a “horrible, vicious, disgusting mayor”
Boulder shooting victims
• Denny Strong, 20
• Neven Stanisic, 23
• Rikki Olds, 25
• Tralona Bartkowiak, 49
• Suzanne Fountain, 59
• Teri Leiker, 51
• Eric Talley, 51
• Kevin Mahoney, 61
• Lynn Murray, 62
• Jody Waters, 65
The biog
Name: Mariam Ketait
Emirate: Dubai
Hobbies: I enjoy travelling, experiencing new things, painting, reading, flying, and the French language
Favourite quote: "Be the change you wish to see" - unknown
Favourite activity: Connecting with different cultures
COMPANY PROFILE
Founders: Sebastian Stefan, Sebastian Morar and Claudia Pacurar
Based: Dubai, UAE
Founded: 2014
Number of employees: 36
Sector: Logistics
Raised: $2.5 million
Investors: DP World, Prime Venture Partners and family offices in Saudi Arabia and the UAE
The bio
Studied up to grade 12 in Vatanappally, a village in India’s southern Thrissur district
Was a middle distance state athletics champion in school
Enjoys driving to Fujairah and Ras Al Khaimah with family
His dream is to continue working as a social worker and help people
Has seven diaries in which he has jotted down notes about his work and money he earned
Keeps the diaries in his car to remember his journey in the Emirates
Honeymoonish
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A timeline of the Historical Dictionary of the Arabic Language
- 2018: Formal work begins
- November 2021: First 17 volumes launched
- November 2022: Additional 19 volumes released
- October 2023: Another 31 volumes released
- November 2024: All 127 volumes completed
PROFILE OF HALAN
Started: November 2017
Founders: Mounir Nakhla, Ahmed Mohsen and Mohamed Aboulnaga
Based: Cairo, Egypt
Sector: transport and logistics
Size: 150 employees
Investment: approximately $8 million
Investors include: Singapore’s Battery Road Digital Holdings, Egypt’s Algebra Ventures, Uber co-founder and former CTO Oscar Salazar
New UK refugee system
- A new “core protection” for refugees moving from permanent to a more basic, temporary protection
- Shortened leave to remain - refugees will receive 30 months instead of five years
- A longer path to settlement with no indefinite settled status until a refugee has spent 20 years in Britain
- To encourage refugees to integrate the government will encourage them to out of the core protection route wherever possible.
- Under core protection there will be no automatic right to family reunion
- Refugees will have a reduced right to public funds
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I Care A Lot
Directed by: J Blakeson
Starring: Rosamund Pike, Peter Dinklage
3/5 stars
The biog
Name: Samar Frost
Born: Abu Dhabi
Hobbies: Singing, music and socialising with friends
Favourite singer: Adele
