SANAA (AFP) — A bomb blast damaged an oil pipeline in northern Yemen early Monday, halting the flow to the Hudeida export terminal on the Red Sea, a regional security official said.
Ahmed Fander blamed the attack on a "group of saboteurs" whom he did not identify, according to the official Saba news agency.
The pipeline has a capacity of carrying 155,000 barrels of crude oil per day from the Safer oilfields in Marib, 170 kilometres (105 miles) east of Sanaa, to the Hudeida terminal.
"The flow of oil was interrupted and the pipeline was damaged," said Fander, deputy security director in Marib, adding that an investigation was underway to identify the assailants.
No one was hurt in the attack, the latest in a series to target oil installations in Yemen.
Yemen, which is considered one of the poorest nations in the world, produces just 380,000 barrels of crude oil a day despite bordering oil powerhouse Saudi Arabia.
More than half of its production is exported, but it is not a member of the giant oil cartel OPEC.
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