According to reports, the US is considering bombing pipelines in Syria in an attempt to cut off the huge profits being made by Isis from captured oilfields, a senior Obama administration official has disclosed.
The US$ 2 million per day (£1.24 million) that the extremist group is believed to be making from the sale of fuel is one of the USA's "principal concerns" and "air strikes are a viable option”, said Julieta Valls Noyes, the Deputy Assistant Secretary for European and Eurasian Affairs during a visit to London.
Oil wells in the Jafra field have already been destroyed by air strikes, but the US is now weighing whether to expand its target list to include pipelines.
Edited from various sources by Elizabeth Corner
Sources: The Independant, The Telegraph