Iraq: Islamic State's Oil Revenue Dives as it Loses Iraqi Territory

Jul 28, 2016 | Ahmed Rasheed, Reuters
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Islamic State, pushed off more than half the Iraqi territory it seized in 2014, has suffered a near collapse in revenue from oil smuggling, officials say, forcing it to cut fighters' pay, levy new taxes and raise fines for breaking its religious code. The jihadist group has lost control of a series of oil fields, and is having to sell what production that remains at steep discounts to persuade truck drivers to collect it and run the gauntlet of U.S.-led air strikes.