US airstrikes hit ISIL oil sites in Syria
Iran Press TV
Thu Sep 25, 2014 1:16PM GMT
Fresh US airstrikes struck oil refineries and fields used by the ISIL terrorists in Syria, killing 19 people overnight and early Thursday.
There were 14 militants among the casualties in addition to five people who were likely their women and children, according to the so-called Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, based in the UK, and two local activist groups.
The report was also confirmed by a third activist group loyal to the militants.
The military aircraft flew 'with a terrifying sound and red lights before the explosions,' one activist said, who documented each explosion.
The airstrikes, which came during the third day of the US-led air campaign, hit at least four oil installations and three oil fields which were among ISIL's main revenue streams.
The refineries were situated around the town of Mayadeen in the eastern province of Deir el-Zour which ISIL terrorists had captured earlier this year, in addition to other national oil fields.
The terrorists use the oil to partly fund their operations. They either smuggle the oil abroad or sell it on the domestic black market.
The airstrikes also hit other targets including checkpoints, compounds, training grounds and vehicles along the Euphrates River in northern and eastern Syria, as well as areas near the Turkish and Iraqi borders.
On Wednesday, US officials announced that Washington and its Arab allies had resumed airstrikes on ISIL positions, which had begun a day earlier.
A senior Kurdish commander in the town of Kobani at the Turkish border said the terrorist group has recruited more militants since the commencement of the air raids.
AT/HRJ
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