Anti-government forces lose ground in areas of northern Iraq heavily populated by people and oil reserves. Oil fields remain beyond reach of frontline fight Peshmerga keep watch to the south of the Khurmala Dome central processing facility, whose flares burn in the background. (BEN LANDO/Iraq Oil Report) American air strikes helped Kurdish forces take back two key towns from anti-government fighters who were threatening key oil installations and the city of Erbil.If militants had been able to hold the towns of Guair and Makhmour, they would have had a direct path to the Khurmala Dome oil field a dozen kilometers away.But the frontline has thus far been successfully held by Kurdish fighters, in coordination with American and Iraqi forces, here In the cradle of the oil industry in Iraq, th… This content is for registered users. Please login to continue. If you are not a registered user, you may […]