Dubai — From a lavish, chandelier-adorned hall at the “Arab Media Summit,” Syrian leader Ahmad al-Sharaa—formerly known as Abu Mohammad al-Julani—announced that Syria is indeed capable of feeding between 70 and 75 million people. He added that this figure could even exceed 100 million.
This is excellent news for a country with a population of roughly 25 to 30 million—a country whose streets were filled this week with people unable to reliably secure bread.
The timing was striking; while al-Sharaa was describing Syria as a future “regional breadbasket” and a “great opportunity” for all, protesters in Aleppo, Idlib, Raqqa, Deir ez-Zor, and other areas were burning tires and blocking highways to protest fuel price hikes ranging from 25 to 40 percent.
After all, diesel powers the trucks that transport wheat; wheat becomes bread; and bread is what people actually eat once the speeches are over.
The arithmetic was simple enough for the summit audience: he claimed Syria produces a surplus, implying that this surplus is merely awaiting investments, ports, and the right PowerPoint presentation. What the surplus apparently does not await are the bakers, farmers, and families who spent 2026 arguing over wheat purchase prices that fail to cover costs, shrinking bread subsidies, and a poverty rate that the World Food Programme still places at nearly 90 percent.
Al-Sharaa’s government has an explanation for everything: they have put forward a narrative claiming the economy has grown from $20 billion to $32 billion and will soon reach $50 billion—and eventually $200 billion—provided there is sufficient stability and an influx of Gulf capital.
This vision might seem coherent if you are sitting in Dubai, but it appears far less so if you are standing in a bread line—a line whose length went unmentioned in the President’s speech.
The reality is that this man—who once led an extremist armed group in Idlib—has discovered the world of international conferences. He has realized that the slogan “We will feed 75 million people” resonates far better than saying, “We have just raised the price of the diesel needed to transport flour to the bakery.”
The truth being sought regarding whether the man is taking hallucinogenic pills.
