IS capture key oil field

DAMASCUS: Islamic State militants have captured a key oil field in central Syria from government troops, a monitor group reported on Monday.

The fall of the al-Jazal oil field, in the province of Homs, came after intense fighting, said London-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights. The Observatory, which relies on a network of activists on the ground, said al-Jazal was the last oil field under government control.

The government had already lost the oil and gas fields in Deir al-Zour, and Kurdish militants in northern Syria now control Rmailan oil field, the country’s largest. Clashes are still raging on near the field, the Observatory said.