Syrian President Bashar al-Assad waving to an admiring crowd. Photo: Syrianpresidency Instagram account.

Syrian businessmen and trade officials say they are worried the economic lifeline provided by Iran is under strain from plunging oil prices, despite public messages of support from Syria’s strongest regional ally.

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has relied on oil-producingIran to help him fight insurgents in a nearly four-year-old civil war and also prop up a currency under pressure. “If it had not been for Iranian support we could not have survived the crisis,” a senior Syrian trade official said from Damascus, requesting anonymity.

Read full story at Reuters.