2025

16 Sailors Held After Iran Intercepts Oil Vessel in Persian Gulf  

Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) has seized a foreign-crewed oil tanker in the Gulf. The armed group alleged the tanker was carrying about 4 million liters of smuggled fuel. IRGC naval units intercepted the vessel as it was leaving Iranian territorial waters in the Persian Gulf, and authorities say the cargo was taken on from smaller vessels and intended for illegal sale outside the country.  

According to Iranian officials, the tanker’s 16 crew members are all foreign nationals. They have been detained and referred to judicial authorities on suspicion of involvement in fuel smuggling, though Iran has not released information on their nationalities. Officials have also not disclosed the ship’s flag, owner, commercial operator or intended destination at the time of the seizure.  

Iranian sources have not reported any casualties or damage to the vessel during the operation. There are also no confirmed reports of foreign naval forces intervening in connection with the seizure, and no foreign government has publicly claimed ownership of the tanker.  

Iranian authorities describe the fuel on board as contraband moved through a network that uses smaller craft to load larger tankers offshore, taking advantage of Iran’s heavily subsidized domestic fuel prices. Officials present the seizure as part of ongoing efforts to combat large-scale maritime fuel smuggling in the Gulf and surrounding waters. 

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You Cannot Build a State From the Outside’: Why Wael Al-Khalidi Came Back to Damascus 

Leaving exile to invest in jobs and production reflects a broader wager that Syria’s post-sanctions moment must be shaped from within rather than observed from abroad 

[DAMASCUS] Syria has entered a pivotal phase in its economic history following the official announcement that the United States has repealed sanctions imposed under what was known as the Caesar Act. The move is being described as the most significant in years, easing financial isolation and opening the door to renewed foreign investment. More than a legal step, the repeal signals a political and economic shift that has put Syria back on the regional and international radar after years largely cut off from global markets. 

Economic expert Samir Tawil told The Media Line that Syria’s needs go beyond injecting capital. He said the country requires long-term investments that do not hinge on quick profits but instead build a sustainable, productive base, alongside the transfer of technical and administrative expertise, modernization of the banking sector, and renewed trust in the legal environment. Estimates indicate the Syrian economy needs to create at least 500,000 new jobs over the next few years to reduce unemployment and absorb new entrants to the labor market. 

Against that backdrop, the experiences of some Syrian business figures who have returned to work inside the country in the post-sanctions period have drawn attention. One is businessman Wael Abdul Wahab Al-Khalidi, whose return to Damascus reflects the complicated trajectory of a broad segment of Syrians who spent years living outside their homeland. 

Born in Damascus to a socially and economically prominent family, Al-Khalidi did not follow a predictable path. During the era of Hafez Assad, and later under Bashar Assad, he faced punitive measures and political and security restrictions that pushed him out of public life and eventually forced him to leave Syria. His departure, he says, was not voluntary but the culmination of bans and persecution that left him among thousands of Syrians stranded abroad without a viable route home. 

He moved through several countries before settling in Egypt and later France, where he rebuilt his professional life and worked in trade, investment, and media as early as 2004. Despite years away, his connection to Syria remained strong through close attention to political and economic developments and ties with the Syrian diaspora, which, during the war and sanctions, built parallel economic and media networks outside the country. 

Al-Khalidi’s return to Damascus in the early days after the fall of the Assad regime was neither emotional nor symbolic, but a calculated decision grounded in his reading of how the country had changed. It followed a long rupture driven more by politics than geography, as many Syrians sensed a new, fragile chapter had begun. 

Speaking to The Media Line, Al-Khalidi said that mutual exclusion, no matter how long it lasts, does not build a state, and that those who remain outside the equation cannot influence its course. He said his decision to return marked a shift from observer to actor and from political rhetoric to direct economic engagement, with reviving production and creating jobs as what he considers the most realistic route to stability. 

He stressed that reconstruction does not only mean rebuilding infrastructure, but also restoring trust between the state and the private sector and shaping an investment environment based on transparency and long-term partnership. He also emphasized that the return of Syrian and Arab capital, alongside the expertise of Syrians abroad, is a key pillar of this phase. He pointed to housing, energy, food industries, and modern agriculture as sectors that can create tens of thousands of jobs and help rebuild a middle class badly damaged over the past years. 

Enacted in 2019, the Caesar Act imposed sweeping restrictions on the Syrian economy, targeting productive and financial sectors and imposing penalties on foreign companies or entities that dealt with the Syrian state or participated in projects within the country. Widely cited economic estimates say the sanctions, along with the war, helped shrink Syria’s gross domestic product by more than 60% from pre-2011 levels, drive exports down to less than one-third of their previous value, and push unemployment and poverty to record highs. 

The lifting of these sanctions in late 2025 has reopened a cautious window of hope. Preliminary economic analyses suggest that removing US restrictions could support a gradual rise in economic activity of 10% to 15% in the early years, provided it is accompanied by relative stability and internal reforms. The decision is also expected to partially reconnect Syria to the global financial system, a crucial condition for trade, investment, and cross-border transfers. 

Specialists argue that Syria offers a fertile investment landscape in one specific sense: not because the market is ready, but because the needs are vast. International estimates put reconstruction costs at $300 billion to $400 billion, including rebuilding destroyed infrastructure, rehabilitating cities, and restoring the energy, water, transportation, and communications sectors. Unofficial data suggest that more than half of the electricity and water networks and about 40% of major roads suffered partial or total damage in recent years. 

Even as that optimism grows, questions persist about what Syria can realistically offer investors. Investment advisers say the market has advantages that are hard to dismiss: comparatively low labor costs, a domestic market of more than 18 million consumers, and a strategic location linking Asia, Europe, and the Arab world. If stability holds, they argue, Syria could again serve as a gateway for regional trade. 

Syrian businessman Mohammad Asaad told The Media Line that early entry into the Syrian market gives investors a meaningful advantage, given the current lack of extensive foreign competition. He said housing, renewable energy, food industries, pharmaceuticals, and modern agriculture rank among the most attractive sectors because local demand remains unmet and returns could be strong over the medium term. 

Beyond profits, investors can shape what Syria becomes next. New projects are expected to create jobs, spur production, and bring technology and expertise into the country. Economic development experts estimate that every $1 billion invested in productive and infrastructure projects could generate 20,000 to 40,000 direct and indirect jobs, with immediate effects on social and economic stability. 

Economic expert Hassan Qassem told The Media Line that “investment is a tool of stability as much as it is a tool of growth,” arguing that restarting the economic cycle reduces poverty and migration and helps rebuild a middle class that was severely eroded over the past years. He added that foreign investment, if properly directed, can improve the quality of goods and services, raise production efficiency, and enhance the competitiveness of the Syrian economy. 

Still, the obstacles are substantial. Weak infrastructure, complex administrative procedures, and the need for deep legal reforms could slow investment, alongside concerns about profit transfers, judicial independence, and property rights protections. Analysts warn that any slide in security or political stability could undermine market confidence, even if opportunities look compelling on paper. 

The repeal of the Caesar Act marks the start of a new path, not the finish line. The investment door has opened, but turning that opening into durable growth will depend on Syria’s ability to offer a stable, transparent business environment—and on whether investors are prepared to commit to long-term partnerships that balance returns with rebuilding an economy shattered by war and isolation. Between cautious optimism and postponed bets, Syria now faces a straightforward test: translating political change into sustainable economic revival. 

Al-Khalidi.jpeg – Wael al-Khalidi, in the city of Douma after the fall of the Assad regime, inspects the destruction caused by the former Syrian regime. (Courtesy Wael al-Khalidi) 

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By Rozanna Latiff

KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 26 (Reuters) – Jailed former Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak will hear a verdict on Friday in the biggest trial he faces over the multibillion-dollar 1MDB scandal, a ruling that could risk deepening tensions within the administration of current premier Anwar Ibrahim.  

Investigators have said about $4.5 billion was allegedly stolen from 1Malaysia Development Berhad, a state fund co-founded by Najib in 2009, and that more than $1 billion allegedly made its way into his personal bank accounts. 

Najib, 72, last year apologised for mishandling the scandal while in office but he has consistently denied wrongdoing, saying he was misled by 1MDB officials and a fugitive financier, Jho Low, on the source of the funds.  

In 2020, Najib was convicted of graft and money laundering for illegally receiving funds from a 1MDB unit and began a 12-year prison sentence two years later after losing all his appeals. That sentence was later halved by a pardons board chaired by Malaysia’s king, with Najib due for release in 2028. 

A Malaysian high court will decide on Friday whether to convict Najib of four more charges of corruption and 21 counts of money laundering involving the illegal transfer of about 2.2 billion ringgit ($539 million) from 1MDB.

If found guilty, he could face maximum jail terms of between 15 and 20 years on each charge, as well as a fine of up to five times the value of the alleged misappropriations.

The implementation of the penalties, however, could be stayed pending further appeals. 

VERDICTS TEST GOVERNMENT STABILITY

The decision will be closely watched after another court this week dismissed a bid by Najib to serve the remainder of his sentence under house arrest. 

That ruling reignited tensions in Anwar’s ruling administration, which includes Najib’s party, the United Malays National Organisation.  

UMNO campaigned against Anwar in a 2022 election but joined his coalition to form a government after the poll ended in a hung parliament.

Several UMNO leaders expressed disappointment with the decision to deny Najib house arrest, saying it risked diluting the powers of Malaysia’s rulers, while others were angered by social media posts by some members of Anwar’s coalition celebrating the ruling. 

Anwar this week called for all parties to handle news of the verdict with patience and wisdom, adding that it was “inappropriate to muddy the atmosphere or add tension” even if there were those who chose not to sympathize with Najib and his family. 

A guilty verdict for Najib on Friday could strain ties further, with some UMNO leaders already calling for the party to review its pact with Anwar or withdraw from the government altogether. An acquittal, however, may weaken Anwar, who has been under pressure to uphold his credentials as an anti-graft campaigner.

Anwar has been accused by critics of betraying progressive voters and allies after prosecutors dropped some corruption charges against Najib and other UMNO figures. The premier has repeatedly said he does not interfere in court cases. 

(Reporting by Rozanna Latiff; Editing by Martin Petty)

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