The extremist militants battling government forces in Iraq know it takes more than guns and ammunition to carve out their Islamic state.
As violence escalates outside Iraq's largest northern oil refinery in Baiji, fighters from the Islamic State of Iraq and Greater Syria (ISIS) are trying to add to the oil fields and facilities the group controls in Syria and are also eyeing factories and power plants.
With assets and territory, ISIS' leader, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, has financial strength that Al-Qaeda never managed to have under Osama bin Laden, who relied mainly on supporters living in the Gulf Cooperation Council nations.
Al-Qaeda fought and lost to U.S. forces in Iraqi towns ISIS now controls, including the city of Mosul, while an Al-Qaeda offshoot has set up a stronghold in the southern mountains of Yemen after Saudi security cracked down on them in 2004 . By holding key territory, ISIS may be able to dodge global efforts to halt the flow of money to terrorists.
As it cements its northern power base, ISIS faces economic challenges that require money, according to Charles Ries, a vice president at research company Rand Corp. in Washington.
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