Sabotage blamed for explosions on Iran’s gas pipeline network

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IRAN, Feb 14: Iran’s Minister of Oil revealed to state TV on Wednesday that two explosions along the country’s primary south-north gas pipeline network were the result of sabotage, refraining from identifying any specific suspects in connection with the incident.

State media further reported that authorities dismissed claims suggesting that the explosions had led to gas disruptions for industries and offices in certain provinces.

Minister Javad Owji described the incidents as “terrorist acts of sabotage,” noting that they occurred at 1 a.m. local time on Wednesday in two regions of Iran’s national gas transmission pipeline network.

While addressing the issue, Owji assured that only villages near the affected pipeline were experiencing gas shortages, emphasizing that repairs were underway and expected to be completed later in the day. State media also indicated that temporary restrictions had been previously scheduled for maintenance purposes.

Owji drew parallels to a similar incident in 2011, characterizing it as an act of sabotage that resulted in temporary gas shortages across four regions of the country.

Although such attacks are infrequent in Iran, in 2017, Arab separatist militants asserted responsibility for detonating two oil pipelines in coordinated assaults in the western Khuzestan province.

In a separate development last December, Iran executed five individuals accused of engaging in sabotage activities with purported ties to Israel’s Mossad intelligence service. The executions were part of a protracted shadow conflict between the two nations, with Tehran alleging Israeli involvement in attacks targeting its nuclear and missile programs—a claim that Israel has neither confirmed nor denied.

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