SYRIA-CONFLICT-CURRENCY-TURKEY-ECONOMY

An employee sorts Turkish lira banknotes at a bank in the town of Sarmada in Syria's northwestern Idlib province, on June 14, 2020. Authorities in northwest Syria are taking steps to substitute the plummeting Syrian pound with the Turkish lira to shield their opposition-held region from an economic crisis ahead of new US sanctions, an official said. The Salvation Government -- a civilian body affiliated to the Hayat Tahrir al-Sham jihadist group which dominates the Idlib region -- had already started paying wages and salaries in Turkish lira last month. (Photo by AAREF WATAD / AFP) (Photo by AAREF WATAD/AFP via Getty Images)