Karen Leigh is News Deeply’s Managing Editor. https://www.newsdeeply.com/syria/contributor/yasser-allawi-and-karen-leigh/rss en Opposition Groups & Rebel Forces War Economy Tue, 13 May 2014 00:00:00 +0000 Yasser Allawi and Karen Leigh https://www.newsdeeply.com/syria/articles/2014/05/13/in-one-town-rebels-battle-over-oil-force-a-civilian-exodus https://www.newsdeeply.com/syria/articles/2014/05/13/in-one-town-rebels-battle-over-oil-force-a-civilian-exodus Fighting between extremist factions in eastern Deir Ezzor province has escalated this week, killing dozens of rebels and forcing residents to flee. At stake is control of a large number of Syria’s oil fields, and economic supremacy on the eastern front.