Insights from Omar Abdulaziz Hallaj’s Intervention

The devastation in Syria’s east, particularly in Deir Az Zor, mirrors the broader national crisis: a country where nearly every sector lies in ruin. While the government has sought to attract foreign investment as a primary means of recovery, such capital rarely addresses the urgent needs of ordinary people. Investors pursue quick returns, not the rebuilding of homes, schools, or basic services. For now, communities are left to shoulder reconstruction on their own, with the state’s role limited to regulation and setting minimum standards.

What is required is a different approach—one grounded in local partnerships. Rather than waiting for large-scale investment, progress can and must begin through collaboration between local leaders, municipalities, and communities themselves. Small, pragmatic steps can deliver basic services and restore trust where the state is absent.

Equally pressing is the misconception around the vast sums often cited for reconstruction. Syria has neither the financial absorption capacity nor the governance framework to channel hundreds of billions of dollars, even if such resources were available. What is needed is not an injection of unrealistic funds, but a long-term process of redevelopment: rebuilding local economies, supply chains, and systems of trust. Deir Az Zor, with its natural wealth, could serve as a driver of recovery—but only if its political status is resolved. Without clarity and cooperation between Damascus and authorities in the northeast, the province risks remaining divided, its resources underutilized.

Sanctions relief is necessary but insufficient. Over-compliance and the absence of stable political arrangements continue to deter investors and institutions. Trust must be rebuilt—both between communities and the state, and between Syria and external partners. Without such foundations, reconstruction will remain stalled, and the immense sacrifices of Syrians will yield little tangible recovery.