(Wall Street Journal) Benoit Faucon, Summer Said and Jared Malsin - Iran has been unable to deliver oil to Syria since Jan. 2 due to U.S. sanctions, according to maritime-data provider TankerTrackers.com. That compares with an average of 66,000 barrels a day in the three months to the New Year. Storage tanks are virtually empty in the port city of Baniyas, home to Syria's largest oil refinery. Syrians in areas under Damascus' control are already feeling the impact, with fuel shortages and skyrocketing energy prices. To enforce the sanctions, the U.S. has enlisted regional allies to monitor oil tankers that navigate the underside of the Arabian peninsula and cross the Suez Canal on their way to Syria's Mediterranean ports. On Nov. 29, Egyptian authorities blocked the crossing of the Sea Shark tanker as it tried to enter the Suez Canal. For years, the tanker regularly delivered about 900,000 barrels of crude every few months from Iran.
2019-03-29 00:00:00Full ArticleBACK Visit the Daily Alert Archive