Repairs made to Egyptian pipeline

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CAIRO, July 6 (UPI) -- Engineers worked to repair a natural gas pipeline to Israel that was hit by an explosion this week, an Egyptian official said.

Saboteurs bombed the pipeline carrying Egyptian natural gas to Israel and Jordan this week. Maqdti Tawfiq, head of the Egyptian operator of the pipeline, said damage was limited, Egyptian daily newspaper Al-Masry Al-Youm reports.

The pipeline services industrial and commercial zones in the Sinai Peninsula and consumers upstream from the pipeline in Israel and Jordan.

The attack on the Egyptian pipeline was the third such incident this year. Tawfiq said additional security was needed for energy infrastructure in order to prevent future accidents.

Ampal-American Israel Corp., a holding company that has a 12.5 percent interest in East Mediterranean Gas Co., said some commercial gas supplies had resumed by Tuesday.

With major gas discoveries off its coast, Israel last year said it was searching for ways to become energy independent.