Shahla Mohieddine stands in front of her courtyard in the Assyria district of Qamishli, wearing gloves and a mask she hopes will keep her safe from the coronavirus. She shows signs of bewilderment and concern as she utters a few words on her mobile phone with her husband.

As soon as she hangs up, she tells Al-Monitor’s correspondent, who is standing at a safe distance, “My children are in their room waiting for their father to bring home some vegetables and fruits. But the prices are so high that we can barely buy what we need. My husband’s income is not enough. He works at a mobile phone shop, which was shut down in compliance with the lockdown. We have no other source of income.”

The Kurdish autonomous administration in Syria has extended the coronavirus lockdown period until at least April 21. It had announced the first 15-day lockdown period March 23 in the broad swath of territory under its control. It also strictly ordered owners of shops, cafeterias, internet cafes and gyms to shut down and adhere to the directives issued by the crisis team formed to address the spread of the coronavirus in the Jazira region.

In a related move, the autonomous administration also exempted residents from paying water, electricity and sanitation bills for May and June. But some of the residents with limited income viewed this step as insignificant, given these bills’ trivial amount. Also, the General Administration for Supply and Consumer Protection — which is a department of the autonomous administration — approved a list of fixed prices for goods, in light of a recent price surge after the curfew was implemented.