The US said the "small-scale refineries" were producing
300-500 barrels of refined petroleum per day
The US-led coalition against Islamic States (IS) has
targeted oil refineries in Syria during a third night of air
strikes against the militants.
The raids - carried out by US, Saudi and UAE aircraft - killed
14 IS fighters and five civilians in eastern Syria, activists
said.
The US military said the refineries generated as much as $2
million (£1.2m) per day in revenue for IS.
US President Barack Obama has vowed to dismantle the IS
"network of death".
IS has seized large areas of Syria and Iraq in recent months
and controls several oilfields. Sales of smuggled crude oil
have helped finance its offensive in both countries.
The US has launched nearly 200 air strikes against the
militants in Iraq since August and expanded the operation
against IS to Syria on Monday.
'Successful strikes'
The US military said the latest strikes, using fighter jets and
drones, hit "small-scale" refineries that were producing
"between 300-500 barrels of refined petroleum per day".
"We are still assessing the outcome of the attack on the
refineries, but have initial indications that the strikes were
successful," the US Central Command said in a statement .
The UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, an
activist group that monitors the Syrian conflict, said the
strikes killed 14 IS fighters in Deir al-Zour and five civilians
in Hassakeh.
Kurdish forces in northern Syria say they have pushed back
an advance by IS fighters near the Kurdish town of Kobane,
close to the border with Turkey.
Local media said clashes in the area were continuing on
Thursday.
IS had besieged the town for several days, taking control of
the surrounding villages and forcing more than 140,000
Syrian Kurds to flee into Turkey.
The BBC's Mark Lowen, who is on the Syria-Turkey border,
says some of those Kurds are now trying to return to
Kobane to fight with the Kurdish militia.
Turkey has been overwhelmed by an estimated 1.5 million
Syrian and Iraqi refugees since the conflict in Syria between
opposition forces and Syrian President Bashar al-Assad
began three years ago.
Turkey is struggling to cope with the influx of Syrian
Kurds fleeing IS advances
Rebel forces have faced several setbacks in recent months
amid offensives against them by both IS fighters and Syrian
government forces.
On Thursday, Syria's army said it had retaken the key
strategic town of Adra, northeast of Damascus, which had
been held by rebels.
On Wednesday, the UN Security Council adopted a binding
resolution compelling states to prevent their nationals
joining jihadists in Iraq and Syria.
President Obama chaired the session and said nations must
prevent the recruitment and financing of foreign fighters.
The US says more than 40 countries have offered to join the
anti-IS coalition.
France said its fighter jets had carried out fresh air strikes in
Iraq on Thursday, a day after the beheading of a French
hostage in Algeria by an IS-linked group.
The French military has been striking targets in Iraq since
last week but has not taken part in anti-IS operations in
Syria.
Meanwhile, the UN said on Thursday that IS had publicly
killed a rights lawyer in the IS-held Iraqi city of Mosul, after
finding her guilty of apostasy in a self-styled Islamic court.
Samira Salih al-Nuaimi was seized from her home last week
after allegedly posting critical messages on Facebook on
the destruction of places of worship by IS, the UN
Assistance Mission in Iraq said.
Coalition growing
On Wednesday, UK Prime Minister David Cameron said the
British military was also ready to "play its part" in the fight
against IS.
The UK Parliament has been recalled to discuss plans for air
strikes against IS on Friday.
The Dutch government has also said it is deploying six F-16
fighter to join the US-led air campaign.
Who are Islamic State (IS)?
Formed out of al-Qaeda in Iraq (AQI) in 2013, IS first
captured Raqqa in eastern Syria
It captured broad swathes of Iraq in June, including
Mosul, and declared a "caliphate" in areas it controls in
Syria and Iraq
Pursuing an extreme form of Sunni Islam, IS has
persecuted non-Muslims such as Yazidis and
Christians, as well as Shia Muslims, whom it regards as
heretics
Known for its brutal tactics, including beheadings of
soldiers, Western journalists and aid workers
The CIA says the group could have as many as 31,000
fighters in Iraq and Syria
The US has been launching air strikes on IS targets in
north-eastern Iraq since mid-August
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