Nothing But Politics

[Rick Faurot]

Iraq Oil Pipeline Junction Blown Up
KIRKUK, Iraq - Saboteurs blew up a junction where multiple oil pipelines cross the Tigris River in northern Iraq (news - web sites) on Tuesday, setting off a chain reaction in power generation systems that left the entire country without power, officials said.

One of them apparently was a domestic pipeline that fed a local power plant. The explosion set off a fire that melted cables and led to the power outage, electricity officials said.

"Beiji is the chokepoint," Morrison said. "It's so easy to hit."

The 3 a.m. attack came soon after engineers had completed a two-month project to install two critical valves that had been damaged in an earlier blast.

Morrison, commander of the northern office of Task Force Shield, based in Kirkuk, said U.S. soldiers dropped off barriers to guard the lines two days ago, but Iraqi authorities had not yet erected them.

More here:

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/ap/20040914/a...