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Syria's Kurds take control of oil fields, now what?

After Kurdish forces took control of parts of northeastern Syria, they have found themselves facing many challenges, including the management of their oil wells.

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Smoke rises from an oil field in Rmeilan in Qamishli province, Syria, Nov. 11, 2013. — REUTERS/Stringer

DERBASIYA, Syria — Five years into the Syrian revolution, entire cities have been brought to rubble and a population has been forcibly displaced by the Syrian regime or the forces that controlled the areas deserted by the Syrian regime's army.

All military forces, such as the Islamic State (IS), Jabhat al-Nusra and the opposition Kurdish forces, sought to control the areas rich with underground resources. These resources are concentrated in Deir ez-Zor and the Kurdish areas in the Rojava region, a de facto autonomous region of Syria.

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