An oil field in northern Iraq has been burning nonstop for four months
Satellite imagery of the Qayyarah oil field reveals the damage Islamic State militants can inflict even when they are on the run. On June 18, Iraqi security forces began an offensive to retake Qayyarah, which the Islamic State seized in 2014. The militants used an oil field complex and refinery near the city, 40 miles […]Laris Karklis writes for The Washington Post:
Satellite imagery of the Qayyarah oil field reveals the damage Islamic State militants can inflict even when they are on the run.
On June 18, Iraqi security forces began an offensive to retake Qayyarah, which the Islamic State seized in 2014. The militants used an oil field complex and refinery near the city, 40 miles south of Mosul, to finance its operations. Based on satellite imagery, the Islamic State was apparently aware an attack was imminent because smoke first began emanating from a small number of wells on June 16.
On July 9, Iraqi forces secured a large air base nine miles west of Qayyarah. By then, more than 10 well heads were ablaze. The air base will serve as a logistics and supply hub for an eventual offensive to push the Islamic State out of Mosul. On Aug. 25, Iraqi forces declared that Qayyarah had been retaken from the Islamic State. By the end of the summer, more than 15 wells were on fire. In September, close to 600 U.S. troops arrived at the air base to assist Iraqi forces with the planned offensive. While the Islamic State is no longer in control of Qayyarah, it still occasionally attacks the facility.
