First Battle of Sha'ir

For other uses, see Battle of the Shaer gas field.
Battle of the Shaer gas field (July 2014)
Part of the Syrian Civil War
First Battle of Sha'ir is located in Syria
Shaer gas field
Shaer gas field
Date16–26 July 2014
(1 week and 3 days)
Location
Palmyra region, Homs Governorate, Syria
Result Both sides claim victory
Territorial
changes		 Syrian government forces recapture the gas field[1]
Belligerents
Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant

Syria Syrian Arab Republic

Commanders and leaders
Hassan Abbous
(IS emir of Homs)[2]		 Unknown
Units involved
Dawoud Brigade[2] Local NDF militia
Army Special Forces
Strength
100 (per ISIL)
2,000 (per SAA)[2][3]		 370 (gas field garrison)[4]
Unknown number of reinforcements
Casualties and losses
51–67 killed[5][6] 347–361 killed[7] (200 executed)[*][2]
200–250 captured/missing (mostly civilian workers)[6][8]
15 tanks captured
several tanks and APCs destroyed
* 11 civilian workers[9]

The Battle of the Shaer gas field occurred in mid-July 2014 during the Syrian Civil War when jihadists of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIS) attacked and captured the field from government forces, which was followed by an Army counter-attack. It was one of the deadliest battles up-to-date in the war between fighters of the militant group and government troops.[5]

  1. ^ Cite error: The named reference retakes was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ a b c d Cite error: The named reference freegas was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ "Toll Climbs in Fight for Syrian Gas Field". WSJ. 21 July 2014. Retrieved 25 October 2014.
  4. ^ Cite error: The named reference presence was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  5. ^ a b "Reports: At least 115 Syrian troops, workers killed in Islamic militants' seizure of gas field". Retrieved 25 October 2014.
  6. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference aims was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  7. ^ 270 killed (16–17 July), 11–20 killed (18 July),[1][2] Archived 2014-07-27 at the Wayback Machine 60–65 killed (19 July),[3][4] 6 killed (21 July),[5] total of 347–361 reported killed
  8. ^ Cite error: The named reference 48hours was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  9. ^ Cite error: The named reference kill270 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).