The Syrian Telecommunications and Post Regulatory Authority affiliated with the Ministry of telecommunications in the regime’s government issued a decision to raise the fees for fixed telephone and internet services.

The decision, published through the Authority’s Facebook account on Thursday, August 28, approved increasing the fees for fixed telephone and internet services by 30% and 35%, respectively, without changing the initial installation fees and without any increase in mobile communication service fees, according to the official Syrian news agency (SANA).

The Authority clarified that the new fees will be effective starting next Sunday, September 1, and the detailed new fees for Syrian Telecom services will be published on its official website and its social media pages.

The Authority stated that it had completed a study of the financial data of Syrian Telecom, including the company’s expenses and revenues. This study revealed significant financial burdens and expenses incurred by Syrian Telecom to ensure the continuous, good, and acceptable provision of fixed communication services to its subscribers around the clock.

In February, the Syrian Telecommunications and Post Regulatory Authority issued a decision to adjust the prices of Syrian Telecom services and internet providers, effective from the beginning of March.

According to the decision, a 35% increase was imposed on the prices of basic communication services and value-added services.

The Authority justified the decision by citing “the rise in operational and foundational costs for Syrian Telecom and to ensure the company’s continued provision of services,” according to the statement.

Syrian Telecom also announced a list of fixed telephone and internet services “via DSL gateways,” in addition to the new “Tarassul TV” service, fiber internet, and data transfer services, which came into effect at the beginning of March.

In early February, Syrian cellular companies raised the prices of packages containing calls and internet, as well as packages specifically for using certain social media applications like WhatsApp or Facebook, without an official announcement.

The price of an 80 GB internet package reached 196,000 Syrian pounds for a monthly subscription, up from 87,500 Syrian pounds.

Local pages circulated the new internet package prices, which ranged from 3,500 Syrian pounds for 500 MB to 82,000 Syrian pounds for 50 GB for a ten-day package, while the monthly packages ranged from 8,000 Syrian pounds per GB to 236,000 Syrian pounds for 110 GB.

The price increases came after all Syriatel packages were discontinued without an official announcement from either the company itself or Syrian Telecom.