November 1, 2026
In a proactive security move, the Syrian General Intelligence Service thwarted a sabotage plot targeting the Baniyas oil refinery in Tartous Governorate on the Syrian coast, in a move that highlights the efforts made to protect the country’s energy infrastructure.
A Syrian source confirmed to Al-Arabiya channel on Sunday that General Intelligence had succeeded in thwarting the plan, without revealing further details about the timing of the operation, its nature, or the party behind it. In parallel, the official Syrian news agency, SANA, quoted a source in General Intelligence confirming the news, noting that no arrests related to the case or details about how the plan was uncovered and thwarted have yet been announced.
The Baniyas Refinery is of great strategic importance due to its location north of the city of Baniyas on the eastern coast of the Mediterranean Sea, and its vital role in securing oil derivatives for the local market.
This threat brings to the fore a series of security incidents that have affected the energy sector in the region over the past years. In January 2020, 6 marine pipelines were subjected to acts of sabotage with explosive materials without the refinery stopping work. In April 2021, three people were killed as a result of a fire that broke out in an oil tanker off the coast of Baniyas following a suspected drone attack, according to the official account at the time. Other security concerns also emerged in October 2026 after the oil derivatives transport line between Baniyas and Homs was damaged, in an accident whose cause was not definitively resolved by the Syrian Oil Company.
The thwarting of the latest plan puts the Baniyas refinery at the forefront of the security and economic scenes, awaiting the details that the Syrian authorities will later reveal about the party involved in this attempt.
