Residents of Ras al-Ain, northwest of al-Hasakah, faced difficulties receiving financial transfers from exchange shops in the days leading up to Eid al-Adha, which falls today, Sunday, June 16. This disruption affected their plans and prevented some from buying Eid necessities.

According to Enab Baladi‘s observations, Ras al-Ain hosts 25 exchange and financial transfer shops, most of which experienced interruptions and delays in the handling of transactions.

Duraid al-Mustafa from Ras al-Ain told Enab Baladi that he was unable to receive a financial transfer from his son residing in Turkey, despite it being sent four days before Eid.

He added that the owner of the transfer office informed him of issues with the main financial block among money exchangers, advising him to wait until the second day of Eid (tomorrow, Monday) for operations to return to normal.

Kamal al-Qatie, a displaced person from Homs to Ras al-Ain, managed to receive a financial transfer sent by his brother residing in Kuwait after several visits to the transfer shop and a delay of three days to receive it.

But Souhaib al-Samer said that his work heavily relies on financial transfers since he is a clothing trader in Ras al-Ain, requiring him to send money to Turkey via transfer offices or the PTT service center, which is a critical part of his business.

He explained that when he went to the PTT employees, they informed him that the service was halted until further notice, disrupting his work before Eid. He added that he suffered financially as unofficial transfer offices are also encountering similar issues.

Delays and stoppages of financial transfers disrupted the plans of residents in Ras al-Ain – June 15, 2024 (Enab Baladi)

Financial system disruption

An owner of a transfer shop in Ras al-Ain told Enab Baladi that the problem with transfers and their delays or complete halts is due to issues with the general financial block of money exchangers in Turkey.

He explained, asking not to be named, that the Turkish authorities’ suspension of several money transfer companies led to a disruption in the system used by transfer operators, causing delays in the region.

After the offices halted sending and receiving transfers to Ras al-Ain, office owners temporarily resorted to PTT transfers. However, currency differences complicated the calculations since PTT transfers are made in dollars and Turkish lira, while the local currency is the Syrian pound.

He mentioned that the problem is being resolved, with most residents having received their financial transfers after the resumption of operations from Turkey to Ras al-Ain and the availability of liquidity at exchangers.

A large portion of the population relies on financial transfers from abroad, especially after financial losses in the agricultural sector and failure to market their crops, leading to monopolization by traders.

One US dollar is equivalent to 32.5 Turkish lira and 15,000 Syrian pounds.

Delays and stoppages of financial transfers disrupted the plans of residents in Ras al-Ain – June 15, 2024 (Enab Baladi)

Each family typically has one or two members working abroad, and this phenomenon has grown with the decline in agricultural productivity, reinforcing the reliance on income from abroad as a primary source of family financial support.

Ras al-Ain and Tel Abyad border Turkey, are controlled by the Turkish-backed Syrian National Army, and are surrounded by frontlines with the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF). The Turkish border is their only gateway to the outside world.