Fuel pipeline attacked in northern Iraq

BAGHDAD - Insurgents on Wednesday blew up a pipeline which carries fuel from Iraq's largest refinery to the country's northern province of Nineveh, the Oil Ministry said.

The attack occurred at 2:10 a.m. local time (2310 GMT Tuesday), which caused the pipeline to halt fuel supplies from Baiji refinery in Salahudin province to Nineveh province, the ministry said in a statement.

It added that the "terrorists planted mines around the blast area to prevent technical teams from reaching the scene."

The ministry used tankers to carry the fuel to Nineveh province until technical teams put out the fire and fix the pipeline which carries 7 million liters per day, according to the statement.

The attack is the second one in four days, the ministry said, adding that on Saturday, the insurgents blew up the pipeline and technical teams repaired the damage on the same day.

Iraq's oil pipelines have been frequently attacked and sabotaged by insurgents since the US-led invasion in 2003.