IS attacks Syrian oil field, kills 30 pro-government gunmen

Islamic State (IS) militants in Syria have killed at least 30 pro-government fighters and security personnel in an attack on a key oil and gas field in central Syria.

An IS oil field in Syria was attacked. (Illustration photo)

IS seized the Sha'ar oil field in Shaer in Homs province in July, killing 350 government soldiers, allied militiamen, security forces and staff, according to the UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR). Most of those killed are believed to have been executed after being taken prisoner.

Government forces regained control of the oil field in late July.

In a new round of fighting that broke out on October 28, IS seized three oil wells and killed at least 30 government and pro-government fighters, the SOHR, which monitors violence in Syria through a network of informants, confirmed.

“IS has been trying to control parts of the oil field,” SOHR said.

Jihadists were also killed but the exact number is unknown, said SOHR director Rami Abdel Rahman.

Fighting continued last night, according to SOHR.

Large-scale fighting between the Syrian government and IS was rare until this summer, when IS began seizing government positions, including a series of military bases in Raqqa province in northern Syria.

Fighting between the two sides has continued since the US-led coalition bombed IS in Syria last month. The US has said it will not cooperate with the forces of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.

IS has targeted oil and gas fields in Syria and Iraq as it seeks funds to fuel its fight to seize territory for a self-declared Islamic “caliphate”.

According to Dan Tri