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Second US Base Near Syrian Oil Field Comes Under Attack, Local Media Say

© AP Photo / Felipe DanaA U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) fighter talks on the radio at a check point near Omar oil field base, eastern Syria
A U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) fighter talks on the radio at a check point near Omar oil field base, eastern Syria - Sputnik International, 1920, 11.07.2021
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On Saturday, a US defence official confirmed that American troops had come under "indirect fire" by unknown forces in Syria's Deir ez-Zor province. That attack took place at a base situated near the Conoco gas field, which is home to a large portion of Syria's gas riches, and has been illegally seized by US forces and their local allies since 2017.
A US military base near the Omar oil field – Syria's largest source of crude oil – has come under attack, the Syrian Arab News Agency reported Sunday, citing local sources.
The agency's sources said the US base, situated in the country's Deir ez-Zor province, was targeted by rocket propelled grenades.
Plumes of smoke were said to have risen from the area in the aftermath of the attack.
SANA gave no indication about who may be responsible for the rocket fire, or whether it resulted in any casualties or damage.
US forces and their allies have not yet commented on the incident.
Footage, yet to be authenticated, of the aftermath of the attack. Tweet reads: "Missile strikes on the Omar oil field in Deir ez-Zor, Syria, which US forces are using as a military base."
This is reportedly the fourth time facilities near the Omar field have been attacked in the past week or so. On Wednesday, the Syrian Democratic Forces – a US-backed mostly Syrian Kurdish militia involved in the illegal occupation of eastern Syria – announced they had "thwarted" a drone attack in the area. However, pro-Syrian government media reported that a drone attack carried out on Thursday caused smoke to rise from the base near the field, and that two other attacks were launched before that in the space of several days.
Sunday's incident is also the second time in less than 24 hours that Syrian media have reported on an attack against US forces stationed near a major strategic energy facility. On Saturday night, a US defence official confirmed to Sputnik that US forces faced an "indirect fire attack" in Conoco, a major gas field which is also situated in Syria's Deir ez-Zor province. No injuries casualties or structural damage were reported in that incident, which local media said involved at least four missiles and/or mortar shells, and was carried out shortly before midnight. The Conoco attack was said to have caused "unusual movements of the occupation forces," according to SANA.

Occupation Under Pressure

Syrian children stoned an American patrol soldiers - Sputnik International, 1920, 02.06.2020
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Syrian Kids Hurl Stones at US Military Convoy Trying to Enter Damascus-Held Area - Videos, Photos

US forces and their SDF allies have faced increasing pressure from local groups over the last year, with residents of scattered villages loyal to the Damascus government regularly blocking roads or throwing stones at US convoys of military equipment, and reporting on the plunder of Syrian oil and wheat stocks being taken out of the country on a regular basis in convoys of trucks and tankers flanked by heavily armed troops and mercenaries.

Occasionally, these confrontations have ended in bloodshed, with tactically superior US forces and their allies engaging in shootouts with locals, or carrying out air and missile strikes against forces suspected of attacking them. The US has also targeted facilities in eastern Syria they claim are used by "Iran-backed" anti-Daesh* Shia militia groups allied to the Baghdad government which Washington says have been responsible for attacks on US forces in neighbouring Iraq.
The Syrian government has repeatedly vowed to restore control over all of its territories, including the energy and food-rich regions of the country's east, which before the war enabled the country to enjoy energy and food self-sufficiency. The jihadist occupation of much of the area between 2014 and 2017, and the US occupation since 2017, have turned the Middle Eastern nation into a net importer of both food and fuel. Earlier this year, Syrian oil minister Bassam Touma estimated that up to 90 percent of the country's oil resources are currently under the control of the US and its allies.
The Biden administration has shied away from admitting that its forces in Syria are engaged in the theft of the country's resources, with officials instead claiming that the troops are there to "prevent the reemergence of Daesh." Joe Biden's predecessor Donald Trump had no qualms about openly admitting that US policy in Syria included "taking" and "keeping" the country's oil, to the horror of deep state operatives and US mainstream media fearing the admission could open Washington up to war crimes charges under international law.
* A terrorist group outlawed in Russia and many other countries.
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