An explosion on a main gas pipeline which caused a blackout across Syria is suspected to be a strike by Islamic State, according to the US.
Earlier in the day, oil minister Ali Ghanem told state media the explosion “was the result of a terrorist attack”.
In Geneva, US envoy for Syria, James Jeffery, said: “We are still looking into (the explosion). But it was almost certainly a strike by IS.”
He went on to speak about the increased level of IS activity in the southeast of the Syrian desert, reports Sky News
The blast occurred on the Arab Gas Pipeline, between the towns Ad Dumayr and Adra, which are northwest of the capital, Damascus. It resulted in a blackout across Syria.
No deaths or injuries related to the blast were reported.
The gas pipeline feeds into three power stations in the south of the country.
The electricity minister told state media that power was gradually being restored across the nation.
IS lost its last territory in Syria in March 2019, however, there are pockets of fighters who still remain.
This part of the gas pipeline has been targeted five times in nearly a decade.
In 2013, Syria saw a power cut which affected most of the country following rebel shelling hitting a gas pipeline during the country’s civil war.
