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In North Syria, Business Hub Hopes to Drive Recovery from War

Workers labor at a metal factory in the industrial zone of Syria's rebel-held city of Al-Bab, Syria March 10, 2022. Picture taken March 10, 2022. (Reuters)
Workers labor at a metal factory in the industrial zone of Syria's rebel-held city of Al-Bab, Syria March 10, 2022. Picture taken March 10, 2022. (Reuters)
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In North Syria, Business Hub Hopes to Drive Recovery from War

Workers labor at a metal factory in the industrial zone of Syria's rebel-held city of Al-Bab, Syria March 10, 2022. Picture taken March 10, 2022. (Reuters)
Workers labor at a metal factory in the industrial zone of Syria's rebel-held city of Al-Bab, Syria March 10, 2022. Picture taken March 10, 2022. (Reuters)

In an industrial zone in northern Syria's opposition-held city of Al-Bab, Abu Omar al-Shihabi's smelter churns out iron bars he says can compete with any produced in Syria and beyond.

The industrial zone is an unlikely business hub. It is located on the edge of a city which was once occupied by ISIS and now sits between a Turkish border wall to the north and a frontline with Syrian government forces to the south.

But the zone, one of five in the region which is controlled by Turkey-backed opposition factions, is key to efforts to develop an economy hit by hardship and destruction during Syria's 11-year conflict.

Success could bring sorely needed jobs and opportunities, six years after Turkish troops and Syrian fighters drove ISIS from the region and prevented a Kurdish force from filling the void.

Turkey hopes that stability can encourage some of the 3.6 million Syrian refugees it currently hosts to head back across the border into Syria.

Shihabi said the low wages in northern Syria and abundance of scrap metal after years of war offer big advantages to his iron smelter.

"In Syria, I can compete with the Turks with my own products," said Shihabi, who mainly sells into opposition-held territories and also into Turkey.

The industrial zone, home to about 30 factories and workshops, was established four years ago on the road north from Al-Bab, with support from Turkey.

A sign across the road which bisects the zone is written in both Arabic and Turkish, highlighting Ankara's lasting influence since its 2016 military incursion. The Turkish lira is widely used in the region and Turkish administrators help run schools and hospitals.

BUILDING SELF-RELIANCE
At the industrial zone, factories produce a range of goods including iron bars used in construction, shoes, clothes, mats, mineral water, and tehina, said businessman Omar Waki who set up the project.

"The biggest inducement (to set up operations)... is the low cost. Labor for us is cheap compared to other areas," he said.

"The average worker's wage in Turkey is $400 (a month). Here it's a quarter of that."

Northern Syria, particularly the city of Aleppo just 30 km (18 miles) to the southwest of Al-Bab, was Syria's commercial hub before 2011, when protests against President Bashar al-Assad spiraled into a war, driving many businesses across into Turkey.

Most products in the Al-Bab zone are sold within the northern opposition-held territories, although some do reach more distant markets across frontlines or borders.

Despite cheap labor costs, businesses in the industrial zone face steep challenges. The region is still vulnerable to a possible offensive by Syrian government forces, while poor transport links and rising electricity costs hamper expansion.

Shihabi's smelter is just a fraction of the size of his pre-war operation, which employed 150 people before it was hit in a 2012 air raid. Now it has just 25 workers, and production is down nearly 90%, producing just .

Abdel Khaleq Tahbash set up a factory producing floormats after fleeing bombardment in Idlib. Despite complaints about electricity costs and obstacles to selling abroad, he said he was happy to be in Al-Bab.

"I prefer to work in Syria," he said. "Without capital you can't work in Turkey, and this is my country."

Waki said security in the northwest was improving, drawing more people to invest including three Turkish companies. While the Al-Bab zone remains modest, it shows Syrian businesses are resilient, he said.

"Instead of importing from China or Turkey, we can make it ourselves. We are self-reliant."

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The Fragile Israel-Hezbollah Truce is Holding so Far, Despite Violations

Mariam Kourani removes a toy car from the rubble of her destroyed house after returning with her family to the Hanouiyeh village in southern Lebanon, on Nov. 28, 2024, following a ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla, File)
Mariam Kourani removes a toy car from the rubble of her destroyed house after returning with her family to the Hanouiyeh village in southern Lebanon, on Nov. 28, 2024, following a ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla, File)
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The Fragile Israel-Hezbollah Truce is Holding so Far, Despite Violations

Mariam Kourani removes a toy car from the rubble of her destroyed house after returning with her family to the Hanouiyeh village in southern Lebanon, on Nov. 28, 2024, following a ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla, File)
Mariam Kourani removes a toy car from the rubble of her destroyed house after returning with her family to the Hanouiyeh village in southern Lebanon, on Nov. 28, 2024, following a ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla, File)

A fragile ceasefire between Israel and the Lebanon's Hezbollah has held up for over a month, even as its terms seem unlikely to be met by the agreed-upon deadline.

The deal struck on Nov. 27 to halt the war required Hezbollah to immediately lay down its arms in southern Lebanon and gave Israel 60 days to withdraw its forces there and hand over control to the Lebanese army and UN peacekeepers.

So far, Israel has withdrawn from just two of the dozens of towns it holds in southern Lebanon. And it has continued striking what it says are bases belonging to Hezbollah, which it accuses of attempting to launch rockets and move weapons before they can be confiscated and destroyed, The AP reported.

Hezbollah, which was severely diminished during nearly 14 months of war, has threatened to resume fighting if Israel does not fully withdraw its forces by the 60-day deadline.

Yet despite accusations from both sides about hundreds of ceasefire violations, the truce is likely to hold, analysts say. That is good news for thousands of Israeli and Lebanese families displaced by the war still waiting to return home.

“The ceasefire agreement is rather opaque and open to interpretation,” said Firas Maksad, a senior fellow with the Middle East Institute in Washington. That flexibility, he said, may give it a better chance of holding in the face of changing circumstances, including the ouster of Syria's longtime leader, Bashar Assad, just days after the ceasefire took effect.

With Assad gone, Hezbollah lost a vital route for smuggling weapons from Iran. While that further weakened Hezbollah’s hand, Israel had already agreed to the US-brokered ceasefire.

Hezbollah began firing rockets into Israel on Oct. 8, 2023 — the day after Hamas launched a deadly attack into Israel that ignited the ongoing war in Gaza. Since then, Israeli air and ground assaults have killed more than 4,000 people in Lebanon, including hundreds of civilians. At the height of the war, more than 1 million Lebanese people were displaced.

Hezbollah rockets forced some 60,000 from their homes in northern Israel, and killed 76 people in Israel, including 31 soldiers. Almost 50 Israeli soldiers were killed during operations inside Lebanon.

Here’s a look at the terms of the ceasefire and its prospects for ending hostilities over the long-term.

What does the ceasefire agreement say? The agreement says that both Hezbollah and Israel will halt “offensive” military actions, but that they can act in self-defense, although it is not entirely clear how that term may be interpreted.

The Lebanese army is tasked with preventing Hezbollah and other militant groups from launching attacks into Israel. It is also required to dismantle Hezbollah facilities and weapons in southern Lebanon — activities that might eventually be expanded to the rest of Lebanon, although it is not explicit in the ceasefire agreement.

The United States, France, Israel, Lebanon and the UN peacekeeping force in Lebanon, known as UNIFIL, are responsible for overseeing implementation of the agreement.

“The key question is not whether the deal will hold, but what version of it will be implemented,” Maksad, the analyst, said.

Is the ceasefire being implemented? Hezbollah has for the most part halted its rocket and drone fire into Israel, and Israel has stopped attacking Hezbollah in most areas of Lebanon. But Israel has launched regular airstrikes on what it says are militant sites in southern Lebanon and in the Bekaa Valley.

Israeli forces have so far withdrawn from two towns in southern Lebanon - Khiam and Shamaa. They remain in some 60 others, according to the International Organization for Migration, and around 160,000 Lebanese remain displaced.

Lebanon has accused Israel of repeatedly violating the ceasefire agreement and last week submitted a complaint to the UN Security Council that says Israel launched some 816 “ground and air attacks” between the start of the ceasefire and Dec. 22, 2024.

The complaint said the attacks have hindered the Lebanese army's efforts to deploy in the south and uphold its end of the ceasefire agreement.

Until Israel hands over control of more towns to the Lebanese army, Israeli troops have been destroying Hezbollah infrastructure, including weapons warehouses and underground tunnels. Lebanese authorities say Israel has also destroyed civilian houses and infrastructure.

What happens after the ceasefire has been in place for 60 days? Israel's withdrawal from Lebanese towns has been slower than anticipated because of a lack of Lebanese army troops ready to take over, according to Lt. Col. Nadav Shoshani, a military spokesman. Lebanon disputes this, and says it is waiting for Israel to withdraw before entering the towns.

Shoshani said Israel is satisfied with the Lebanese army's control of the areas it has already withdrawn from, and that while it would prefer a faster transfer of power, security is its most important objective.

Israel does not consider the 60-day timetable for withdrawal to be “sacred,” said Harel Chorev, an expert on Israel-Lebanon relations at Tel Aviv University who estimates that Lebanon will need to recruit and deploy thousands more troops before Israel will be ready to hand over control.

Hezbollah officials have said that if Israeli forces remain in Lebanon 60 days past the start of the ceasefire, the militant group might return to attacking them. But Hezbollah Secretary General Naim Kassem said Wednesday that, for now, the group is holding off to give the Lebanese state a chance to "take responsibility” for enforcing the agreement.

Over the final two months of the war, Hezbollah suffered major blows to its leadership, weapons and forces from a barrage of Israeli airstrikes, and a ground invasion that led to fierce battles in southern Lebanon. The fall of Assad was another big setback.

“The power imbalance suggests Israel may want to ensure greater freedom of action after the 60-day period,” Maksad, the analyst, said. And Hezbollah, in its weakened position, now has a “strong interest” in making sure the deal doesn't fall apart altogether “despite Israeli violations,” he said.

While Hezbollah may not be in a position to return to open war with Israel, it or other groups could mount guerilla attacks using light weaponry if Israeli troops remain in southern Lebanon, said former Lebanese army Gen. Hassan Jouni. And even if Israel does withdraw all of its ground forces, Jouni said, the Israeli military could could continue to carry out sporadic airstrikes in Lebanon, much as it has done in Syria for years.