On late Sunday night, Aug. 23, Syria's main gas pipeline called Arab Gas Pipeline exploded. The explosion resulted in the place's 'national blackout.' The United States envoy currently looking at the situation told media that the incident was 'almost certainly' made by the Islamic State or ISIS.
ISIS attack again?
Firefighters spray water on the fire that resulted from an explosion on the Arab Gas Pipeline between the towns of Ad Dumayr and Adra, northwest of the capital of Damascus, Syria, in this handout released by SANA on August 24, 2020.
Three power stations in Syria recently exploded, resulting in a 'national blackout' experienced in the nation over Sunday, Aug. 23.
Investigators in the scene observed that a missing large chunk piece of the pipeline was missing. This was thought to be the main reason for the explosion. Officials in Syria called the sudden explosion as 'terrorist attack,' including Syria's oil minister, Ali Ghanem.
He also noted that the Arab Gas Pipeline was already targeted for the sixth time, counting the recent one. Electricity coming from the pipelines was already fixed, and the nation already gained their power back.
But, who's the culprit behind this massive explosion?
The United States Syria Envoy James Jeffrey was quoted by Reuters, accusing the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) as the main suspect behind the explosion.
"We are still looking into that. But it was almost certainly a strike by ISIS," Jeffrey told reporters in Geneva at the start of U.N.-sponsored talks of the Syrian Constitutional Committee.
The US envoy also mentioned that 'ISIS' activities are now increasing over time.
Adding, "In Syria, particularly the Badia Desert south of the Euphrates ... we're seeing an upsurge of ISIS activity."
Is it possible that this was an ISIS attack?
Smoke rises after what activists said were air strikes by forces loyal to Syria's President Bashar al-Assad in Arbeen, in the eastern Damascus suburb of Ghouta, March 8, 2015.
The U.S. envoy no longer elaborates on his statement regarding the ISIS attack, or how he concluded the statement.
In 2018, Al Jazeera reported that Russia, in partnership with the Iran-backed Damascus government, already wiped off the presence of the last ISIS rebels from Dumeir, a town about 40km (25 miles) northeast of Damascus.
However, the groups immediately returned to the city around the Badia desert, after their expulsion in the area.
Also not coincidental, Syria had already experienced a number of explosions for the past months.
In Dec., three government-run oil and gas installations in central Syria exploded due to the presence of unknown flying drones.
A month after that, the Syrian government mentioned about divers planting explosives near the Mediterranean Coast, but it was stopped.
So far, investigations about the explosion are still ongoing.
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Written by Jamie Pancho
