The attack on the refinery by rebels from the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIS) started at 4 a.m. (0100 UTC) in Baiji, security sources and employees told news agencies. One mortar hit a spare-parts warehouse and smoke billowed from the building, the sources told the news agency Reuters.
Authorities evacuated foreigners from the refinery Tuesday as forces braced for the attack. Late Tuesday, reports had suggested that the compound was still being held by elite government troops, while the nearby town fell to ISIS fighters.
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