Syria mulls filing lawsuit against US over ‘plundering oil’

Oil pump

27 Dec 2019; MEMO: Syria is considering the possibility of filing an international lawsuit against the United States (US) over stealing local oil, the Syrian presidency’s political and media adviser announced yesterday.

Speaking to Lebanon’s Al-Mayadeen, Buthaina Shaaban accused the US of “plundering Syrian oil”, condemning the move.

This is not the first time that Damascus has announced its intention to take action against Washington over the same oil issue. In November, Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad said his government would file a complaint to the United Nations (UN) over what he described as “the US’ theft” of the Syrian oil.

US President Donald Trump has announced that American forces have secured the oil fields in north-eastern Syria, proposing that international oil company Exxon Mobil, or another US oil company, could manage them. His proposal sparked widespread criticism.