Explosion hits Damascus gas pipeline, cutting electricity

An explosion early on Monday struck a gas pipeline in a Damascus suburb, cutting electricity throughout Syria.Oil Minister Ali Ghanem said the explosion struck the line that feeds three power stations in southern Syria and that it could have been a “terrorist act”, although he did not elaborate.

Syria’s oil and gas infrastructure have been hit over the past years by acts of sabotage but no one has ever claimed responsibility for such attacks.The nine-year civil war that has killed more than 400,000 people has also badly affected Syria’s infrastructure and oil and gas fields, many of which are outside government control.

The state news agency SANA quoted Electricity Minister Zuhair Kharbotli as saying the explosion on the “Arab Gas Pipeline” occurred after midnight Sunday between the northeastern Damascus suburbs of Adra and Dumair.He said it was the sixth time the pipeline was hit.

(Image Credit: AP)