Syrian Rebels Take Major Oilfield

Islamist Rebels in Syria, led by al Qaeda-linked fighters, took control of Syria’s largest oilfield on Saturday, cutting off President Bashar Assad from almost all local reserves and leaving him reliant on imported oil. “Now, nearly all of Syria’s usable oil reserves are in the hands of the Nusra Front and other Islamist units…The regime’s neck is now in Nusra’s hands,” said the head of the pro-opposition Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, Rami Abdelrahman. The oilfield capture is a significant win for the Islamist rebels, as Assad’s forces have been gaining the upper hand over the rebels recently with a string of captures of rebel strongholds.