A massive explosion, the second in the day, rocked the separatist-controlled region of Luhansk in Ukraine, hours after pro-Russia rebels announced a massive evacuation from the Donbas region in the eastern part of the country citing aggression by the Ukrainian government.

According to reports, a part of a gas pipeline near the city of Luhansk, one of the major cities in the region, caught fire late on Friday night after a blast, and Russian news agency Interfax reported that the fire took place because of a “powerful explosion,” citing a local gas supplier. Another explosion in the same pipeline was reported hours earlier.

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As news about the new explosion spread, pro-Russian channels on messaging app Telegram turned their guns at the Ukraine government and accused it of attacking the gas pipeline to disrupt rebel supplies, reported the Guardian citing OCCRP.

The explosions in Luhansk come amid US warnings of a “false flag” operation by Russia in Ukraine, and amid warnings that Russia could be manipulating the rebels to create a pretext for an invasion.

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Earlier in the day, a vehicular explosion, suspected to be a car bomb, rocked the city of Donetsk, and the US and Ukrainian officials claimed that the attack had been staged as a means of “provocation.”

With tensions between Russia and Ukraine rising, US President Joe Biden warned on Friday that Russia were running a disinformation campaign to divert attention while preparing for an invasion on Ukraine.

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Speaking to the press from the White House on Friday, Biden said that he was “convinced” that Vladimir Putin had “made the decision” to invade Ukraine, and warned that an invasion could be due in the coming “days” or the next “week.”

Russia has reportedly amassed more than 100,000 troops along Ukraine’s borders, and despite Moscow’s assurances about troop withdrawals, the West fears that an invasion is due any time.