By Central Asia Online
By Rachid Najm
Armed jihadist groups in Syria – al-Qaeda-affiliated Jabhat al-Nusra (JAN) and the “Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant” (ISIL) in particular – are battling each other for control of the country’s oil, choking off supply to the Syrian people, as they engage in a public relations war.
This public relations offensive is notable as al-Qaeda in the past has sought to keep its disputes out of the public eye, analysts and experts on extremist groups told Al-Shorfa.
Earlier in February, ISIL fighters surrounded the headquarters and check-points of JAN and the jihadist group Ahrar al-Sham in al-Shaddadi, rural al-Hasakeh, an area considered to be al-Hasakeh Province’s main oil producer with numerous oil wells.
JAN had been in control of the village, which lies on the al-Hasakeh-Deir Ezzor road, for about a year, and Ahrar al-Sham has been active in the area.
Immediately after ISIL’s takeover, Ahrar al-Sham issued a statement describing ISIL as a “treacherous and betraying group,” accusing it of stealing weapons and resources and of forcing captured fighters from other groups to pledge allegiance to ISIL.
The conflict extended to oil-rich Deir Ezzor the same day, when JAN issued a statement accusing ISIL of robbing vital installations under its control such as the Conoco gas field, saying this action cut off JAN’s fighters “from their strategic depth in Deir Ezzor province.”
In the same statement, JAN also accused ISIL of stealing close to US $5m.
ISIL issued a statement in response two days later accusing JAN of “straying from the right path” and of disobedience, threatening it with retaliation if it did not “come back to [its] senses”.
Money, power and oil
“The essence of the dispute between ISIL and JAN is money, for whoever controls the economic resources, especially the oil wells, will have the money and thus power and continuity,” said Maj. Gen. Yahya Mohammed Ali, a strategic analyst specialising in terrorist groups who is retired from the Egyptian army.
Ali said he expects the military and media wars between ISIL and other Islamist factions over funding sources to continue amid fears that some sources of funding “would be cut off now that the nature of these organisations and their affiliation with al-Qaeda have been exposed.”
It has become clear that the war between al-Qaeda’s affiliates in Syria is a struggle for power and wealth, especially agricultural land, grain silos and oil and gas fields and wells, said Syrian journalist Mohammed al-Abdullah.
“Armed groups have recently emerged on the ground and taken control of the oil wells in co-operation with ISIL and JAN,” he told Al-Shorfa.
ISIL has increased its military presence in the city of Deir Ezzor and has seized control of the Thayem field and Conoco plant, al-Abdullah said, adding that sometimes oil is bartered for food or weapons.
“Oil helps ISIL expand its presence on the ground,” said Regional Centre for Strategic Studies researcher Wael al-Sharimi.
In addition to al-Shaddadi oil wells, ISIL recently gained control of al-Jabsa and Rumeilan fields and the oil wells in the Badiyat Shaer area in rural Hama after fierce battles with JAN, he told Al-Shorfa.
“Both ISIL and JAN are facing major technical difficulties in extracting the oil from the wells they gained control of due to lack of required materials and machinery,” he said.
“The extracted oil is processed using very primitive methods, particularly refining it using ‘burners’ in which oil derivatives such as gasoline, diesel and kerosene are separated,” he said.
While it is not possible to know the exact amount of oil being produced by armed groups, he said, before the outbreak of the revolution, Syria extracted 385,000 barrels per day, and that has now dropped to 13,000 barrels per day, according to the Syrian Ministry of Petroleum and Mineral Resources.
Prices unaffordable for civilians
ISIL and JAN’s control of oil fields and refineries allowed them to control sales and distribution in most opposition-held areas of Syria, journalist al-Abdullah told Al-Shorfa.
“Petrol and fuel oil have become a rare commodity, and if available, their prices are too high for Syrian citizens to afford,” he said.
The rise of fuel oil prices has harmed Syrians in opposition-held areas, especially as these areas are witnessing a severe drop of temperatures in winter — a typical family needs at least five litres of fuel oil every day for heating, which is unaffordable, al-Abdullah said.
Food prices are also affected, al-Abdullah said, as wheat fields and storage silos are in areas controlled by armed groups that control the distribution methods and quantities.
A loaf of bread now goes for 200 liras ($1.40), as compared to no more than 15 liras ($0.10) before the revolution, he said.
Evidence of al-Qaeda’s disintegration
“What is happening now between ISIL and JAN is a major change in the way armed groups that subscribe to jihadist ideology deal with each other,” al-Sharimi said.
“Never in the past has a conflict between two factions come out in public in this manner, especially between al-Qaeda-affiliated organisations,” he added.
“Al-Qaeda and affiliated organisations rely heavily on the statements they release as they are directed not only at jihadists but also at supporters” and sympathisers, he said.
Recent statements are notable for their direct and targeted attacks, he said, in addition to the use of Koranic verses to support arguments, which represents a “dual message directed at both supporters in general and scholars to obtain their absolute support”.
The article Al-Qaeda Affiliates In Syria Wrangle Over Money, Power And Oil appeared first on Eurasia Review.