Eighteen crude oils and seven source rock samples from the Mesopotamian foredeep, NE Syria, and from the NE Palmyrides in the centre of the country have been characterized by geochemical techniques. The presence of two oil families ("A" and "B") generated by different source rock types of different ages has been established on the basis of biomarker and carbon isotopic analyses. The data indicates that Groups A and B oils were generated by marine clastic and marine carbonate-evaporitic source rocks, respectively. Group A oils, occurring in Middle Triassic, Middle Jurassic and Upper Cretaceous reservoir rocks in the NE Palmyride area, are geochemically similar to extracts from the Lower Triassic Amanus Shale Formation. Group B oils, which are present in Middle Triassic, Middle Jurassic and Upper Cretaceous reservoirs in the Mesopotamian foredeep, are geochemically similar to extracts of the Middle Triassic Kurra Chine Dolomite and Upper Cretaceous Shiranish Formations.