Syria accuses rebels of setting fire to oil wells after internal disputes

BEIRUT – Syria's state news agency says rebels fighting to topple the government have set fire to three oil wells.

The news agency SANA said Sunday that the fires would cause a daily loss of 4,670 barrels of oil and 52 cubic meters of natural gas.

It accused "terrorists," the government's term for rebels, of setting the fires after fighting among themselves over how to divide the oil.

Rebels waging a civil war against President Bashar Assad have seized large areas of territory in Syria's oil-rich east, including a number of oil fields. Although rebels lack the ability to exploit the wells, their loss represents a setback to the cash-strapped government they are trying to topple.

SANA said rebels have set fire to a total of nine wells in recent months.