TEHRAN – Iran’s Interior Ministry reacted on Wednesday to Ahwazi Arabs claiming they had blown up two pipelines in Khuzestan province, denying any act of sabotage. 

Reportedly, members of the so-called the Arab Struggle Movement for the Liberation of al-Ahwaz had claimed responsibility for the pipeline fires. 

“The report is untrue and we faced no security threats,” said Salman Samani, a spokesman for the Interior Ministry. 

In a statement posted on their Ahwazna.net website, the group said the first attack targeted the "Maroun" pipeline of the state-owned Aghajari Oil and Gas Production Company, while the second attack targeted pipelines from the Baharkan oilfield to Kharg Island, Reuters reported. 

Also, an official with the Iranian oil company rejected the report, saying, “The news has been reported by a group of separatists called Ahwazi, and is categorically untrue.” 

The group had previously claimed responsibility for a fire that broke out at Iran's Bu Ali Sina petrochemical refinery complex, added the official on condition of anonymity.  

The London-based Wahhabi group has been seeking unrest in southern province of Khuzestan for some time now, focusing on sectarian issues. 

Iranian media outlets have not reacted to the news yet.
 
AK/PA