Iran: Authorities Say Gas Pipeline Bombers Killed, Arrested
The governor of Makou has announced that three of the people responsible for the recent gas pipeline bombing have been killed and another four have been arrested.
ISNA reported that Makou Governor Hamid Ahmadian said: “Since the explosion happened on Friday morning, security and intelligence forces have been on alert and made every effort to apprehend the culprits.”
He added: “The efforts paid off this morning when three of the perpetrators were killed and another four were arrested.”
He added that the operation was carried out by the “Anonymous Soldiers of Imam Zaman”, which is the Islamic Republic’s way of referring to undercover agents in the Ministry of Intelligence.
Ahmadian was quoted as saying: “The leader of this terrorist group, who went by the name of Jamil, was a Turkish national and was killed with two of his companions.”
On Friday at 2:10 AM, Iranian pipelines carrying natural gas to Turkey exploded near Makou. The Makou governor announced that there were no casualties from the blast but gas flow to Turkey was halted, as were manufacturing activities in the region.
On Saturday, the chief executive officer of the Iranian National Gas Company announced that the pipelines had been repaired and gas exports were back on track.
Iran exports 30 million cubic metres of gas to Turkey every day, and in recent years, gas pipelines to Turkey have been targeted with several explosions, which Iranian authorities have attributed to terrorist groups, specifically the Kurdish militant group, the Free Life Party of Kurdistan (PJAK).
