Massive explosion at Iranian port related to missile fuel transport killed 4 people, more than 500 people – Country
A huge explosion in the port in southern Iran on Saturday, allegedly linked to the shipment of a chemical component used to make missile propellant, killing four people and injuring more than 500 people.
The explosion at the port of Shahid Rajaei occurred in Iran and the United States met in Oman on Saturday to participate in the third round of negotiations on Tehran's rapid advance nuclear program.
While no one in Iran directly suggests that the explosion comes from the attack, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, who is about to preside over the negotiations, admitted on Wednesday: “In light of past attempted sabotage and assassination operations that aim to elicit a legitimate response, our security services are on high alert.”
The port reportedly received chemicals from missile fuel
For hours, Iranian authorities have no clear explanation for the cause of the explosion, which is located outside of Bandar Abbas, although they do deny that the explosion has anything to do with the country's oil industry.
However, the port took over the shipment of “sodium perchlorate rocket fuel” in March. The fuel is part of the Financial Times' first report in January on the shipment of two ships from Iran from China. The fuel will be used to replenish Iran's missile stockpile, and its direct attack on Israel was exhausted during the Hamas war with Hamas in the Gaza Strip.
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“The fire was reportedly due to the result of improper handling of solid fuels designed to be used for Iranian ballistic missiles.”
As Ambrey said, the Associated Press analyzed ship tracking data will be a ship believed to be carrying a nearby ship in March. Iran has not yet recognized freight. Iran did not immediately respond to Saturday's request for comment on the UN mission.
It is unclear why Iran will not move chemicals from ports, especially after the 2020 Beirut port explosion. The explosion was caused by hundreds of tons of highly explosive nitrate ignition, killing more than 200 people and injuring more than 6,000 people. However, Israel does target Iranian missile sites, and Tehran uses industrial mixers to create solid fuel.
Red smoke rose from the fire before the explosion Saturday in social media footage of Shahid Rajaei's explosion. This suggests that the compounds are involved in the explosion.
“Come back! Tell the gasoline (truck) to go!” a man in a video shouted before the explosion. “Tell him to go, it will blow up! Oh my god, this is blowing up! Everyone is evacuating! Come back! Come back!”
On Saturday night, the state-run IRNA news agency said the Iranian Customs Administration blamed “stocks of dangerous goods and chemical materials stored in the port area” without any detailed description.
Main destinations for transporting Iranian goods
Shahid Rajaei has always been a target before. Israel attributed to the port's 2020 cyberattack. Israel said it foiled cyberattacks against water infrastructure, attributed to Iran.
Social media video shows black smoke rolling after the explosion. Others showed glass from a building kilometre (or miles) away from the center of the explosion. State media footage showed the injured crowd at least one hospital was crowded, and ambulances arrived as medical staff drove a person to a stretcher.
Provincial disaster management official Mehrdad Hasanzadeh told Iran's state television that first responders are trying to reach the area while others are trying to evacuate the site.
Hasanzadeh said the explosion came from the containers at the city's Shahid Rajaei port without details. State TV also reported that the building collapsed due to the explosion and explosion, despite not providing more details.
The Ministry of Home Affairs said it investigated the explosion. Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian also expressed condolences to those affected by the explosion.
The port of Shahid Rajaei in Hormozgan province is about 1,050 kilometers (650 miles) and is located in the southeast of Tehran, the capital of Iran, on the narrow mouth of the Persian Gulf, and all oil transactions pass by 20%.
& Copy 2025 Canadian Press
