ALEPPO, Syria — Syrians in opposition-controlled areas of Idlib and Aleppo provinces are suffering under poor living conditions, with most of them struggling to meet even basic needs after almost nine years of civil war. But the recent collapse of the Syrian pound has made their situation even harder. Heating, food, decent housing, clean running water and other services have become quite costly.

“Winter has been very harsh this year," Aymen Suweid, a media activist from northern Aleppo, told Al-Monitor. "The vast majority of people in the Aleppo countryside were unable to cover heating costs due to the soaring prices of fuel. The price of a barrel of diesel fuel used for heating stands at 90,000 pounds, which is the equivalent of $100, compared with $35 last year.”

He added, “Most of the poor people, mainly in the [refugee] camps, opted for wood heaters and stoves and are now collecting firewood and dry tree branches from surrounding orchards. People who are better off are buying coal for 4,000 pounds [$5] a bag, which only lasts three days.”

AFP reported this week that some Syrians have resorted to burning pistachio shells to heat their homes.