Missile chemical shipped to Iranian port before huge explosion
In this photo provided by Islamic Republic News Agency, IRNA, men carry an injured man after a massive explosion near the southern port city of Bandar Abbas, Iran, Saturday, April 26, 2025. (Mohammad Rasoul Moradi/IRNA via AP) In this photo provided by Islamic Republic News Agency, IRNA, men carry an injured man after a massive explosion near the southern port city of Bandar Abbas, Iran, Saturday, April 26, 2025. PHOTO:AP
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A devastating explosion at the Shahid Rajaei port in southern Iran on April 26, 2025, has raised suspicions about the potential link between the shipment of missile fuel chemicals being shipped from abroad and the blast.
The explosion killed at least 25 people and injured more than 750, severely impacting the region.
According to a report by the private security firm Ambrey, the port had received a shipment of ammonium perchlorate—a chemical used in missile propellant—just a month before the blast.
The shipment, which came from China, arrived in March 2025 and was intended to replenish Iran's missile stockpiles, which had been significantly depleted due to the country's military involvement in recent conflicts, including direct attacks on Israel.
The ammonium perchlorate was part of a larger supply of solid propellant for Iranian ballistic missiles, which has sparked concerns about the materials being improperly stored or handled at the port.
The explosion, which occurred amidst critical nuclear negotiations between Iran and the United States in Oman, sent shockwaves through nearby cities.
Eyewitness reports and social media footage captured the dramatic moments before the explosion, showing reddish-hued smoke rising into the sky, signaling the potential involvement of chemical compounds in the blast, similar to the deadly Beirut explosion in 2020, which was also linked to hazardous materials like ammonium nitrate.
While Iran has not officially confirmed the arrival of the chemical shipment, ship-tracking data analyzed by The Associated Press places one of the vessels believed to be carrying the ammonium perchlorate in the vicinity of Shahid Rajaei port in March.
This raises the possibility that the shipment was mishandled or improperly stored in the months leading up to the explosion.
In the aftermath of the blast, Iranian authorities were quick to blame the disaster on the stockpiling of hazardous goods and chemicals at the port, although they have not elaborated on the precise cause.
It is also unclear why the dangerous chemical materials were not moved from the port, given the history of explosions linked to chemical storage mishandling, such as the catastrophic 2020 Beirut explosion that killed over 200 people.
While there has been no official statement from Iran acknowledging the connection between the explosion and the missile fuel, there are growing concerns that improper storage of these chemicals might have played a crucial role in the deadly incident.
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