At least 36 people were killed in air strikes by Russian and Syrian jets on Islamic State-controlled Deir Ezzor province, a monitor said, describing them as the heaviest in the region since the start of the war.
At least 36 people were killed and dozens more injured in more than 70 raids carried out by Russian and Syrian planes against several districts in Deir Ezzor.Rami Abdel Rahman, Syrian Observatory for Human Rights
He described the raids, which targeted several large cities and smaller towns in the province and three oil fields on Friday, as “the worst bombardment of the region since the start of the uprising in 2011”.
Moscow also fired 18 cruise missiles from ships in its Caspian Sea fleet at seven targets in the Raqa, Idlib and Aleppo provinces, defence minister Sergei Shoigu was quoted as saying by Russian news agencies.
Besides the military airport and a few areas controlled by the regime, Deir Ezzor and most of its capital region is held by Islamic State militants.
The US-led coalition fighting IS claimed on Monday to have destroyed 116 fuel trucks used by militants in eastern Syria, in one of the largest raids in weeks.
IS reportedly makes millions of dollars in revenue from oil fields under its control, and the coalition has regularly targeted oil infrastructure held by the group.
An investigation by British newspaper The Financial Times in October estimated that the militants reap some $1.5 million a day from oil, based on the price of $45 a barrel.
(With inputs from PTI)
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