Fuel shortages keep Iraqi motorists in long lines

Shafaq News- Baghdad

Fuel shortages persisted across Baghdad and provinces in central and southern Iraq on Saturday, with gasoline and gasoil supplies remaining scarce and dozens of filling stations closed.

Shafaq News correspondents documented long queues at operating stations, including vehicles seeking gasoil, which is widely used by trucks and other heavy vehicles. The shortages and station closures also contributed to traffic congestion on several streets and bridges in the capital.

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The renewed disruption comes about two weeks after an earlier fuel shortage in Baghdad and several other provinces had eased.

On Friday, the Oil Ministry attributed the shortages to delayed gasoline shipments as the Iran-US conflict disrupted tanker movements, compounding a gap between domestic production and consumption. It announced that new shipments would arrive soon, putting daily gasoline consumption at about 33 million liters, rising to around 38 million during periods of heightened demand.