28 Dead, More Than 700 Injured in Iranian Port Explosion
At least 28 people have died from a powerful explosion at Iran's largest port of Bandar Abbas, which also left more than 700 injured, Iranian media said on April 27.
Firefighters continue to work to extinguish the fire from Saturday's blast, which occurred in the Shahid Rajaee section of the port, Iran's largest container hub. The explosion shattered windows for several miles around the area, shearing metal strips off shipping containers while damaging their contents, according to state media.
It also
The incident took place as Iran held its third round of nuclear talks with the United States in Oman.
Mehrdad Hasanzadeh, a provincial disaster management official, told Iranian state media that emergency services were attempting to reach the area while others tried to evacuate the site.
The explosion is believed to have been fueled by chemicals at the port, but leadership in Tehran has not yet given an official explanation after previously denying that the blast was linked to Iran's oil industry or that it was due to mishandling of solid fuel used for missiles.
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Hossein Zafari, a spokesperson for Iran's crisis management organization, suggested the explosion was caused by poor storage conditions of chemicals in some of the port's containers.
While it's still unclear exactly what caused the explosion, the port was scheduled to receive two shipments from China in recent months of a component used in rocket fuel, which the Financial Times first reported in January. Iran's regime has long received support from communist China, which has helped the Middle Eastern power skirt sanctions by
The two Chinese shipments each carried roughly 1,000 tons of sodium perchlorate, a component used to construct fuel for Iran's ballistic missiles, according to a
A spokesperson for Iran's Defense Ministry told state media that reports that the explosion could have come from fuel mishandling were 'aligned with enemy psyops,' claiming that the area affected by the blast did not contain any military cargo.
Iran's Interior Ministry is still investigating the blast, and Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said earlier in the week that Tehran's security services remain on high alert to potential acts of sabotage and assassination.
Andrew Thornebrooke and Reuters contributed to this report.
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