Death toll in Iran's Bandar Abbas port blast rises to 70 and 1200 injured
Beirut – The death toll from a major explosion in Iran's most important container port of Bandar Abbas rose to at least 70, with over 1,200 injured, state media said on Monday, as firefighters battled a blaze that Iranian officials said was now under control 48 hours after the start of the fire.
Saturday's blast took place in the Shahid Rajaee section of the port, Iran's biggest container hub. Efforts to put out the ensuing blaze have continued since with sporadic fires breaking out due to wind and flammable goods in the containers, some releasing toxic emissions in the area, according to state media.
'After putting the huge fire under control, rescue operations are underway' Iran's state media said, citing the governor of Hormozgan Province, in which Bandar Abbas is situated. 'Removing containers could take up to two weeks', it added.
Iran's ISNA news agency cited its interior minister Eskandar Momeni as saying national operations to confront the fire in Shahid Rajaee had ended and the management of firefighting had been handed over to local authorities.
'Shortcomings in regards to not respecting security protocols have been identified and some of the individuals at fault have been summoned', Momeni said, according to state media
An initial report by the investigative committee charged with the incident found shortcomings in adherence to principles of civil defence and security.
Around 22 people are missing and 22 bodies have not been identified yet, state TV cited the governor of Hormozgan as saying.
Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on Sunday ordered an investigation to 'uncover any negligence or intent' behind the incident, an indication that authorities are not ruling out sabotage.
The incident occurred as Iran began a
third round of nuclear talks
with the United States in Oman, but there was no indication of a link between the two events.
Iran's Infrastructure Communications Company said on Monday that a large
cyber attack
against the country's infrastructure had been repelled a day after the blast, without providing more details.
Poor storage of chemicals in containers is suspected of having caused the explosion. A spokesperson for the crisis management organisation said on Saturday that earlier warnings had highlighted potential safety risks at the port.
Reuters
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
L'Orient-Le Jour
17 hours ago
- L'Orient-Le Jour
An LF office hit by stray bullets in Ain al-Rummaneh
An office of the Lebanese Forces (LF), located in a shopping center in Ain al-Rummaneh, the Christian southeastern suburb of Beirut, was hit by stray bullets overnight from Sunday to Monday following a dispute that broke out near the center, a local mokhtar told L'Orient-Le Jour on Monday. Ain al-Rummaneh, home to many LF supporters, borders Beirut's southern suburb, a Hezbollah stronghold. The two camps are sharply divided over the issue of the Shiite party's arms, as pressure mounts on the pro-Iranian group after the government's decision to proceed with its disarmament, as well as that of other armed groups, by the end of the year. Contacted by L'Orient-Le Jour, a source within the LF said the party is following up on the issue with the relevant security forces, "awaiting an official statement that will clarify all the ambiguous details of this operation." The same source preferred to refrain from comment until the investigation is complete, stating that "any statement made without all the facts could lead things in the wrong direction." Local channel LBCI, citing security sources, said the shopping center housing the LF office was targeted by automatic weapons fire. "A bullet directly hit the LF office, while other projectiles scattered to different parts of the center," it added. "There are also reports of disputes related to the management of this shopping center," LBCI added.
L'Orient-Le Jour
21 hours ago
- L'Orient-Le Jour
Pezeshkian visits Armenia to discuss Zangezur corridor, backed by Washington
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian is traveling to Armenia on Monday for talks on the creation, under U.S. auspices, of a transit corridor near the Iranian border planned as part of the recent peace agreement between Yerevan and Baku. Pezeshkian left the country for Armenia and then Belarus on a two-day trip, Iranian state television announced, broadcasting footage of the president's departure. In Yerevan, he will discuss the planned creation of the Zangezur corridor, a transit zone crossing Armenia to connect Azerbaijan to its Nakhchivan enclave — a long-standing demand of Baku but one to which Tehran has long objected. Under the Baku-Yerevan agreement reached on August 8 in Washington, the United States will receive development rights for this corridor, named the "Trump Route for International Peace and Prosperity" (TRIPP.) "The presence of American companies in the region is concerning (...) we will discuss this and share our concerns" with Armenian officials, Pezeshkian told television before his departure. Iran has long opposed this corridor, fearing it would cut the country off from the Caucasus and potentially bring a hostile foreign presence to its border. In recent days, Iran has warned Armenia against any progress on the project, attributing possible "hegemonic objectives in the Caucasus region" to the United States. Armenian officials "have assured us that no American force or American security company would be present in Armenia under the pretext of this route," Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said Monday, quoted by the state-run Irna news agency.
Nahar Net
21 hours ago
- Nahar Net
Iran warns war with Israel could resume at any time
A senior Iranian official warned Monday that war with Israel could erupt at any moment, describing the current lull after June's 12-day conflict as only a temporary halt. "We must be prepared at every moment for confrontation; right now, we are not even in a ceasefire (agreement); we are in a cessation of hostilities," said First Vice President Mohammad Reza Aref. The fighting in June saw Israel bombard Iranian nuclear and military sites, as well as residential areas, killing more than 1,000 people, including senior commanders and nuclear scientists. Iran retaliated with missile and drone strikes that killed dozens in Israel. The United States announced a halt in fighting on June 24, two days after it joined the war by bombing Iranian nuclear facilities. But there was no agreement formalizing the ceasefire, only an undeclared pause in hostilities. On Sunday, Yahya Rahim Safavi, a military adviser to Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, told Iranian media the country was "preparing plans for the worst-case scenario". "We are not in a ceasefire now, we are in a war phase, it could break down at any time, there is no protocol, no regulations, no agreement between us and the Israelis, between us and the Americans," he said in remarks carried by the Shargh daily. "A ceasefire means ceasing attacks; that could change at any time," he added. Since then, Iranian officials have insisted the country is not seeking war but is ready for another confrontation. Western powers accuse Iran of pursuing nuclear weapons through its atomic program, a charge Tehran strongly denies. Following the war, Israel and the United States repeatedly threatened to attack Iran again should Tehran relaunch its nuclear sites and resume its nuclear enrichment program. The United Nations nuclear watchdog has warned that Iran is the only non-nuclear-armed country that enriches uranium to 60 percent -– far beyond the 3.67 percent cap set by a landmark international accord reached in 2015. The level is a short step from the 90-percent enrichment required for a nuclear weapon. Last week, Britain, France and Germany, all signatories to the 2015 deal, threatened to reimpose sanctions lifted under the agreement. Iran has warned of serious consequence with some officials in the country hinting at withdrawal of Tehran from the nuclear non-proliferation treaty.
