Explosion rocks Egypt gas pipeline

Security official blames armed gang for "attack" at terminal that supplies natural gas to Jordan and Israel. Last Modified: 27 Apr 2011 04:32

A blast struck a different section of the pipeline in February, sending flames into the air near the town of El-Arish [AFP] An explosion in Egypt's North Sinai has rocked a terminal that supplies natural gas to Jordan and Israel. Flames shot into the air at the al-Sabil terminal on Wednesday, sending nearby residents fleeing from their homes. A security official blamed saboteurs for the blast south of the town of El-Arish, 50km from the border with Israel. "An unknown armed gang attacked the gas pipeline near Arish city," the unnamed security source told the Reuters news agency, adding that the flow of gas to Israel and Jordan had been hit. "Authorities closed the main source of gas supplying the pipeline and are working to extinguish the fire," the source said. On February 5, an explosion at a different section of the pipeline severed gas exports to neighbouring Israel and Jordan in an incident that came during an 18-day popular uprising that forced former president Hosni Mubarak from power. Egypt's natural gas company blamed the February incident on a gas leak, although local security officials said they suspected sabotage in that blast. Bedouin tribesmen of the Sinai Peninsula attempted to blow up the pipeline last July as tensions intensified between them and the Egyptian government, which they accuse of discrimination and of ignoring their plight.

Source: Agencies