US strategy to target oil fields held by IS leads to civilian deaths

The US strategy of carrying out air strikes on oil fields held by Islamic State is leading to death of civilians because in the latest instance of a U.S.-led coalition airstrike on a gas distribution facility set off a series of secondary explosions in which at least eight people died nzherald.co.nz.

The names of four are known and another four charred bodies have been placed in a nearby mosque for identification – the slain men are believed to be fuel tanker drivers.
Reports indicate that the airstrike had targeted a distribution station in the town of Khasham in the oil-rich province of Deir el-Zour. The incident was also reported by the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, which relies on a network of activists inside Syria.

Incidentally, the U.S.-led coalition has been aggressively targeting IS-held oil facilities in Syria because these are believed to be a key source of income for the militants.