A pipeline transiting Egyptian gas to Israel and Jordan was blown up in the Sinai region early on Sunday in the 15th of such attacks since the outbreak of an uprising in early 2011 that toppled President Hosni Mubarak.
Quoting security officials, Arab media reported that unidentified gunmen in a small truck drove up to the pipeline, placed explosive charges under it and detonated from a distance at al-Tuwail, east of the town of El-Arish where the pipeline branches out to Israel and Jordan.
The massive explosion rattled nearby buildings and flames could be seen as far as 30 kilometer away, the reports said.
Bedouin fighters were suspected behind such attacks which have been recurring since the Egyptian uprising. Presence of armed Bedouin tribals in the Sinai peninsula is one of the major security problems facing Egyptian forces since the anti-Mubarak revolt.
There had been protests in Egypt for selling gas to Israel below market rates as per agreement entered into by the previous Mubarak regime.
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