MESOP : NATURAL PKK GAS – IS seeks to disrupt YPG natural gas transport

10 Sep 2015 – An IS fighter detonated a car laden with explosives on Tuesday outside a YPG military base near one of the latter’s largest hubs for piping natural gas in northeastern Al-Hasakah, a local journalist told Syria Direct on Wednesday.

“IS is trying to disrupt the transportation of gas and oil to the Peshmerga in Iraq,” said Hasakah-based Ali al-Nayef, noting the Islamic State achieved this goal when they temporarily captured the nearby Rabiya border crossing with Iraq last year.IS-affiliated Twitter accounts claimed credit for the attack on the facility in the village of al-Suwayidiya, less than 5km away from the Iraqi border.The Islamic State killed 35 members of the Kurdish People’s Protection Units (YPG) in the blast.“This is the first time IS has attacked the area, which is considered a secure area that funds the regime and the YPG since it contains one of the largest natural gas facilities in Syria,” said Majid al-Majid, an activist in Al-Hasakah city. Read more: www.mesop.de