STORY: U.S. forces transfer "stolen Syrian oil" to bases in Iraq: media
SHOOTING DATE: Dec. 20, 2023
DATELINE: Dec. 22, 2023
LENGTH: 00:01:35
LOCATION: Damascus
CATEGORY: POLITICS

SHOTLIST:
1. various of primitive oil refinery in the northeastern province of Al-Hasakah
2. various of the stolen oil by US in fuel tankers in the northeastern province of Hasakah
3. various of streets in Al-Hasakah city
4. SOUNDBITE (Arabic): MASIRA AL-HASSAN, Al-Hasakah resident

STORYLINE:

A 44-tanker convoy carrying oil taken from Syrian fields departed Syria's northeastern al-Hasakah province for U.S. bases in neighboring Iraq on Thursday, state news agency SANA reported.
   
According to local sources cited by SANA, the convoy exited the Yarubiya countryside on the Iraqi-Syrian border through the unauthorized Mahmoudiya crossing,
   
The incident came days after the U.S. forces took 95 tankers of oil and a truckload of grains from northeastern Syria on Dec. 17.
   
The Syrian government has repeatedly accused the U.S. forces of "pillaging Syrian resources," a move that further exacerbates the economic hardships of the war-torn country.
   
U.S. sanctions and military presence have led to a significant decrease in Syria's oil and gas production, according to Farhan Jamil Abdullah, head of the Syrian Oil Company.

The government has lost control of most energy fields due to U.S. presence in oil-rich regions. Oil Minister Firas Hassan Kaddour said in July that the losses of the energy sector in Syria are close to 100 billion U.S. dollars.

SOUNDBITE (Arabic): MASIRA AL-HASSAN, Al-Hasakah resident
"The Syrian people see with their own eyes that the American occupation are stealing natural resources, which we desperately need during these harsh conditions of winter and the global economic crisis. What about the Syrian people who see that wheat and oil are being stolen by the United States?"

Xinhua News Agency correspondents reporting from Damascus.
(XHTV)