EU bans Syria oil as crackdown intensifies

The European Union moved to ban all imports of oil from Syria Friday amid a crackdown against demonstrators in the country.

The move marked the most punitive measure by the European Union against Syria since its crackdown began six months ago, the New York Times reports. The government has been using military force and detentions to crush a nonviolent uprising.

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The announcement of a ban by the EU came on a particularly violent day in Syria. Security forces reportedly killed 11 people Friday as demonstrators and government forces clashed in the streets over the possession of bodies of the wounded and dead, the Los Angeles Times reports.

"They were swarming all around us. Then the security forces started shooting … straight at us," a protester named Wissam in a Damascus suburb said.

Syria exports nearly all its oil to Europe and relies heavily on that income. Oil accounts for about a third of the government's revenue, the Los Angeles Times states.

"Syria gets about 28% of its revenue from the oil trade and sells fuel to France, Germany, Italy and the Netherlands. The EU has in the past been reluctant to ban Syrian oil and gas imports for fear of the impact on the Syrian public and small businesses," states the Daily Mail.

The international community has repeated tried to use diplomatic efforts to persuade the Syrian government to end its crackdown. Last month, the United States imposed oil import and financial sanctions on the country.

The United Nations estimates 2,200 people have been killed by President Bashar Assad's security forces since March. Of those, 350 were killed in just August.