Coalition strikes destroy IS oil field in Syria: spokesman

Says strikes on Omar oil field would affect ISIS' ability to generate funds through oil sales

Air strikes by the US-led coalition destroyed an oil facility run by the Islamic State group in eastern Syria, a spokesman said today.

The series of strikes late yesterday on the Omar oil field near the city of Deir Ezzor would affect the jihadist organisation's ability to generate funds through oil sales, he said.

"There were strikes last night that struck Daesh-controlled oil refineries, command and control centres and transportation nodes" in the Omar oil field, US operations officer Major Michael Filanowski told reporters in Baghdad.

"There were 26 targets and all 26 were struck," he said. "That will impact their strategic ability to generate money."
 
He said the amount of money IS was estimated to generate through its exploitation of the Omar oil field was between $1.7 million and $5.1 million a month.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitor said a coalition air raid on the Omar field destroyed pipelines and oil storage facilities.

Observatory chief Rami Abdel Rahman said the strike killed a civilian, and wounded several other civilians and IS fighters.

IS, which controls large regions of Syria and Iraq, has relied heavily on oil production to finance its self-proclaimed "caliphate".