Exclusive: Syria, Iraq and US plan to unveil Mediterranean pipeline deal to bypass Strait of Hormuz

Exclusive: Syria, Iraq and US plan to unveil Mediterranean pipeline deal to bypass Strait of Hormuz Submitted by Sean Mathews on Sat, 07/11/2026 - 10:14 The Trump administration will announce plans to resurrect a five-decade-old pipeline running from Iraq to the Syrian port of Baniyas Oil facilities at the Baniyas port refinery on the Mediterranean Sea, Syria, on 15 April 2026 (Bakr Alkasem/AFP) Off Iraq , Syria and the US plan to revive a historic 500-mile pipeline to Syria's Mediterranean coast as part of efforts to reduce Iran’s control of the Strait of Hormuz, senior Iraqi and regional officials have told Middle East Eye. An agreement to revive the pipeline, originally running from the northern Iraqi city of Kirkuk to Syria’s coastal town of Baniyas, is expected to be unveiled next week when Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi meets US President Donald Trump at the White House, the sources told MEE. Tom Barrack, Trump’s ambassador to Turkey and envoy to Syria and Iraq, has been working on the details of the agreement before Zaidi’s visit, which is also expected to include a stop in Texas, the US's energy hub state.