Islamic State claims sabotage attack on Egypt’s gas pipeline to Israel

Al-Monitor Staff

Nov 19, 2020

Egyptian security personnel stand in the vicinity of flames following an attack by saboteurs on an Egyptian gas pipeline on July 12, 2011, at el-Arish in the north of the Sinai Peninsula, the fourth time since February, cutting supplies to Israel and Jordan, the official Egyptian MENA news agency reported. — AFP via Getty Images)

Egypt’s military said a “limited explosion” struck a gas pipeline in North Sinai on Thursday, an incident for which the Islamic State’s local branch has claimed credit.

The explosion took place near the town of el-Arish, in an area of the Sinai Peninsula that has continues to face an Islamist insurgency, despite the Egyptian military’s often brutal efforts in recent years to rout the fighters.