Latest news with #MojtabaGhahremani
The National
29-04-2025
- Business
- The National
Iran port explosion: Customs back to normal as victims' families set to receive compensation
Authorities at Iran's Shahid Rajaee port said that customs procedures were 'back to normal' on Tuesday after a large explosion and fire on Saturday killed at least 70 people and wounded 1,000 others. Ninety per cent of the storage and containers for loading and offloading are operational, the state news agency Irna reported. The Chief Justice of Hormozgan province, Mojtaba Ghahremani, said families of the victims will receive financial compensation in the coming 48 hours. 'The names of 25 victims whose identities have been identified have been given to insurance companies,' the semi-official Tasnim news agency reported him as saying, adding that the remaining victims' families will receive the same treatment once they have been identified. In a bid to resume operations, employees at the port returned to work with visible bruises, Irna said. Only one pier of the port's 23 suffered heavy damage as a result of the explosion, Irna said. Meanwhile an official at the regulatory Central Insurance of Iran said an assessment of the coverage has been done and damage to vehicles will be compensated. The port of Shahid Rajaee lies near the major coastal city of Bandar Abbas on the Strait of Hormuz, a waterway through which one-fifth of global oil output passes. The explosion took place on the same day as indirect US-Iran nuclear talks which were held in Oman on Saturday. State news outlets however warned against jumping to assumptions on the cause of the incident, given its timing. Hormozgan provincial governor Mohammad Ashouri ruled out sabotage. 'The set of hypotheses and investigations carried out during the process indicated that the sabotage theory lacks basis or relevance,' he told state television on Monday. Instead, Interior Minister Eskandar Momeni blamed the explosion on 'negligence'. – With reporting from wires
Al Jazeera
27-04-2025
- Politics
- Al Jazeera
Fires continue to burn as Iran probes deadly explosion at key port
Fires continue to burn a day after a massive explosion tore through Iran's largest commercial port in Bandar Abbas, as casualties continue to rise. The death toll from the massive explosion at Shahid Rajaei Port rose to 25, Iran's Tasnim news agency reported, quoting an official on Sunday, as firefighters continued with their efforts to put out the fire. Close to 800 people were reported injured, officials said. 'The total number of people killed is at least 25,' Tasnim reported, quoting Hormozgan province's head of the judiciary, Mojtaba Ghahremani. On Sunday, a video posted by Tasnim showed a helicopter hovering over the site of the incident, trying to help extinguish the fire as thick black smoke rose. Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian expressed sympathy for the victims of the deadly blast, adding he had 'issued an order to investigate the situation and the causes'. The country's national emergency agency told Tasnim that at least five of the victims had been transferred to the city of Shiraz for further treatment. 'The fire is under control but still not out,' a state TV correspondent reported from the site about 20 hours after the explosion. Entekhab news website quoted the national crisis management agency as saying that 80 percent of the fire has been put out, adding that most of the 752 people taken to medical facilities for treatment had been discharged. Three Chinese nationals were 'lightly injured', China's state broadcaster CCTV reported, citing its Bandar Abbas consulate. With choking smoke and air pollution spreading throughout the area, all schools and offices in Bandar Abbas, the capital of Hormozgan province, have been ordered closed on Sunday to allow authorities to focus on the emergency effort, state TV reported. The explosion took place on Saturday near the Strait of Hormuz, through which a fifth of the world's oil output passes. The port's customs office said in a statement, carried by state television, that the explosion probably resulted from a fire that broke out at the hazardous and chemical materials storage depot. A person with ties to Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, speaking on condition of anonymity, told The New York Times that the chemical that exploded was sodium perchlorate, a major ingredient in solid fuel for missiles. The explosion was so powerful that it was felt about 50km (30 miles) away, Fars news agency reported. Images from the official IRNA news agency showed rescuers and survivors walking along a boulevard carpeted with debris after the blast at Shahid Rajaei, more than 1,000km (620 miles) south of Tehran. Speaking later at the scene, Interior Minister Eskandar Momeni told state TV: 'All resources from other cities and Tehran have been dispatched.' The explosion comes several months after one of Iran's deadliest work accidents in years. The coal mine blast in September, caused by a gas leak, killed more than 50 people at Tabas in the east of the country. The incident took place as Iranian and US delegations met in Oman for high-level talks on Tehran's nuclear programme, with both sides reporting progress.
Roya News
27-04-2025
- Politics
- Roya News
Iran: Death toll from port blast rises to 25
The death toll from a massive blast at Iran's largest commercial port has risen to 25, local media reported Sunday. "The total number of people killed is at least 25," according to the Tasnim news agency, which cited Hormozgan province's head of the judiciary, Mojtaba Ghahremani. Saturday, a massive explosion rocked Iran's Shahid Rajaee Port near Bandar Abbas on Saturday, prompting President Masoud Pezeshkian to order an investigation into the cause of the disaster. Iranian state TV reported from the scene that "the fire has been brought under control but is not yet fully extinguished," as thick black smoke continued to billow from the site. The blast, which was heard from several kilometers away, occurred around noon local time (08:30 GMT) at Shahid Rajaee Port, through which about 85 percent of Iran's cargo trade passes. The port is located roughly 23 kilometers west of Bandar Abbas, near the strategic Strait of Hormuz, a critical route for about one-fifth of the world's oil supply. According to the official IRNA news agency, Shahid Rajaee is Iran's largest and most advanced container port, featuring 12 container terminals, 30 cranes, and extensive modern equipment. It plays a crucial role in the country's maritime economy.
NDTV
27-04-2025
- Politics
- NDTV
What Caused Massive Blast At Iran's Bandar Abbas Port That Killed Over 20
Tehran: At least 25 people were killed and hundreds of others were injured in a massive blast that rocked the Iranian port city of Bandar Abbas on Saturday. The explosion, which hit the Shahid Rajaee section of the port, occurred probably due to the poor storage of chemicals in containers, according to officials. "The total number of people killed is at least 25," Tasnim news agency reported, citing Hormozgan province's head of the judiciary, Mojtaba Ghahremani. The explosion occurred near the Strait of Hormuz, through which a fifth of the world's oil output passes. The timing of the blast raised eyebrows as it occurred when 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. What Caused The Blast Hossein Zafari, a spokesperson for Iran's crisis management organisation, appeared to blame the explosion on poor storage of chemicals in containers at Shahid Rajaee. "The cause of the explosion was the chemicals inside the containers," he told Iran's ILNA news agency. "Previously, the Director General of Crisis Management had given warnings to this port during their visits and had pointed out the possibility of danger," Zafari said. Meanwhile, the port's customs office said in a statement carried by state television that the explosion probably resulted from a fire that broke out at the hazardous and chemical materials storage depot. A regional emergency official said several containers had exploded. Quoting a person with ties to Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, the New York Times reported that what exploded was sodium perchlorate -- a major ingredient in solid fuel for missiles. However, an Iranian government spokesperson said that although chemicals had likely caused the blast, it was not yet possible to determine the exact reason. Probe Ordered Iran's President Masoud Pezeshkian has ordered a probe into the incident and sent his interior minister, Eskandar Momeni, to the explosion site. Momeni said efforts were continuing to extinguish the fire and prevent it from spreading to other areas. Speaking Sunday at the scene, Momeni said that "the situation has stabilised in the main areas" of the port. He told state TV that workers had resumed loading containers and customs clearance. Iran's official news channels aired footage of a vast black and orange cloud of smoke billowing up above the port in the aftermath of the blast, and an office building with its doors blown off and papers and debris strewn around. Fars news agency reported that the explosion was so powerful that it was felt and heard about 50 kilometres (30 miles) away. "The shockwave was so strong that most of the port buildings were severely damaged," Tasnim news agency reported. Located near the strategic Strait of Hormuz, Shahid Rajaee port is Iran's biggest container hub, handling a majority of the country's container goods, according to state media. Blast Adds To The Series Of Deadly Events A series of deadly incidents has hit Iranian energy and industrial infrastructure in recent years, with many, like Saturday's blast, blamed on negligence. They have included refinery fires, a gas explosion at a coal mine, and an emergency repair incident at Bandar Abbas that killed one worker in 2023. Iran has blamed some other incidents on its arch-foe Israel, which has carried out attacks on Iranian soil targeting Iran's nuclear programme in recent years and last year bombed the country's air defences. Tehran said Israel was behind a February 2024 attack on Iranian gas pipelines, while in 2020, computers at Shahid Rajaee were hit by a cyberattack. The Washington Post reported that Israel appeared to be behind that incident as retaliation for an earlier Iranian cyberattack. Israel has indicated it is nervous about the outcome of US-Iran talks, demanding a full dismantlement of Iran's nuclear programme. Tehran says the programme is used solely for peaceful purposes, while international observers say it is getting closer to being able to build a bomb.
Al-Ahram Weekly
27-04-2025
- Al-Ahram Weekly
Death toll from Iran port blast rises to 25: Media - Region
The death toll from a massive blast at Iran's largest commercial port has risen to 25, local media reported Sunday. "The total number of people killed is at least 25," according to the Tasnim news agency, which cited Hormozgan province's head of the judiciary, Mojtaba Ghahremani. Fires were blazing Sunday a day after a massive explosion tore through Iran's largest commercial port, in which at least 800 were wounded, according to state media. The blast occurred Saturday at Shahid Rajaee Port in southern Iran, near the Strait of Hormuz through which a fifth of world oil output passes. The port's customs office said in a statement carried by state television that the explosion probably resulted from a fire that broke out at the hazardous and chemical materials storage depot. The New York Times quoted a person with ties to Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss security matters, saying that what exploded was sodium perchlorate -- a major ingredient in solid fuel for missiles. Iranian state TV on Sunday gave an updated toll of 18 people killed and 800 injured, with thick black smoke still visible in live footage from the scene. Three Chinese nationals were "lightly injured", China's state broadcaster CCTV reported, citing its Bandar Abbas consulate. The explosion was so powerful that it was felt and heard about 50 kilometres (30 miles) away, Fars news agency reported. Blood-stained cars Images from IRNA showed rescuers and survivors walking along a wide boulevard carpeted with debris after the blast at Shahid Rajaee, more than 1,000 kilometres south of Tehran. Flames engulfed a truck trailer and blood stained the side of a crushed car, while a helicopter dropped water on massive black smoke clouds billowing from behind stacked shipping containers. Citing local emergency services, state TV reported that "hundreds have been transferred to nearby medical centres", while the provincial blood transfusion centre issued a call for donations. Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian expressed sympathy for the victims of the deadly blast, adding he had "issued an order to investigate the situation and the causes". Speaking later at the scene, Interior Minister Eskandar Momeni told state TV: "All resources from other cities and Tehran have been dispatched." With choking smoke and air pollution spreading throughout the area, all schools and offices in Bandar Abbas, the nearby capital of Hormozgan province, have been ordered closed on Sunday to allow authorities to focus on the emergency effort, state TV said. Containers exploded Mehrdad Hassanzadeh, head of the province's crisis management authority, told state TV that "the cause of this incident was the explosion of several containers stored in the Shahid Rajaee Port wharf area". "The shockwave was so strong that most of the port buildings were severely damaged," Tasnim news agency reported. Saturday is the start of the working week in Iran, meaning the port would have been busy with employees. The United Arab Emirates expressed "solidarity with Iran" over the explosion and Saudi Arabia sent condolences. The state-owned National Iranian Oil Products Distribution Company said in a statement carried by local media that the explosion "has no connection" to its facilities and that "Bandar Abbas oil facilities are currently operating without interruption". The explosion comes several months after one of Iran's deadliest work accidents in years. The coal mine blast in September, caused by a gas leak, killed more than 50 people at Tabas in the east of the country. Saturday's explosion also came as Iranian and US delegations met in Oman for high-level talks on Tehran's nuclear programme, with both sides reporting progress. Follow us on: Facebook Instagram Whatsapp Short link:
