CAIRO: Egyptian officials reportedly have arrested a man allegedly involved in at least some of the 10 attacks on the natural gas pipeline from the country to Israel and Jordan this year, the official state-run MENA news agency reported on Tuesday. The attacks, 9 of which have occurred in the post-Hosni Mubarak era of Egypt – the other during the 18 days of protests against the ousted dictator, have left worries over the security situation in the Sinai Peninsula and have grown fears of worsening relations with Israel. “The security forces have managed to find one of the participants involved in the explosions on the gas pipeline,” MENA reported, without naming a source. The suspect was named only as Mohamed S. M. and was reported to live in al-Arish, close to the Gaza border and near the pipelines that have been attacked. MENA reported the man was also accused of involvement in an attack on a police station in al-Arish earlier this year. They allegedly found a laptop in his possession that details weapons and plans of pipelines in the country. The pipelines carry cheap gas to Israel and Jordan. The 20-year gas deal struck with Israel in 2005 under Mubarak's reign entails very favorable conditions for Israel. It is highly contested among Egyptians who see the deal as a selling-off of its natural resources, besides the objection of exporting to Israel as a matter of principle. On the other hand, Israel is highly dependent on the gas imports from Egypt, which accounts for 43 percent of its gas supplies. Under popular pressure to toughen its stance towards Israel, the interim government has sought to renegotiate the terms of the gas deal with Israel, but so far with no success. However, they were able to double the price of gas exported to Jordan last month. The Sinai has suffered time and again from a fragile security situation, which was aggravated after the police thinned out in the wake of the February revolution. The Sinai is claimed by Israel to serve as a rear base for militant attacks against its territory. It is also reported to be an important smuggling route to the Palestinian enclave of Gaza. The geostrategic importance of the area adds to sensitive issue of marginality of the Beduin community. It complains that the authorities have neglected the Sinai for decades. Egyptian authorities have taken steps to improve the security situation, carrying out security sweeps against Islamist groups they claim to be responsible for recent attacks on pipelines. Egyptian armed forces reportedly captured a four Islamist militants involved in the preparation of a pipeline attack. On November 21, two police officers were shot in el-Arish while attempting to capture the leader of an al-Qaida inspired militant group. BM ShortURL: http://goo.gl/nrn3T Tags: Attacks, featured, Natural Gas, Pipelines, Sinai Section: Egypt, Latest News
