Explosions kill 6 in 2 Iranian cities, officials claim gas leaks
The reported explosion in Bandar Abbas comes amid heightened tensions between Tehran and Washington, following weeks of unrest in Iran and renewed Western concerns over the country's nuclear programme.
A gas leak caused the explosion at a building in Iran’s southern port city of Bandar Abbas on Saturday, killing at least one person and injuring 14 others, the semi-official Mehr news agency reported, citing the local fire department chief. Authorities said the incident was under investigation.
A local official told Iranian news agencies that the explosion occurred in Bandar Abbas, home to Iran’s most important container port, but the cause was not immediately known. Iranian media said the incident was under investigation, without providing further details. Iranian authorities could not be immediately contacted for comment.
The semi-official Tasnim news agency dismissed social media claims that a commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps’ navy had been targeted in the blast, calling the reports “completely false”. Two Israeli officials told Reuters that Israel was not involved in the blasts reported in Iran on Saturday.
Bandar Abbas lies on the Strait of Hormuz, the vital shipping route between Iran and Oman that handles about one-fifth of the world’s seaborne oil trade. The port had suffered a major explosion in April last year that killed dozens and injured more than 1,000 people, with an investigative committee at the time blaming shortcomings in adherence to civil defence and security principles.
GAS EXPLOSION KILLS 4 IN AHWAZ
In a separate incident, a gas explosion ripped through a residential building in the southwestern city of Ahvaz, near the Iraqi border, killing at least five people, Iranian media reported. Earlier reports had put the death toll at four.
State-run Tehran Times said the blast was caused by a gas leak. Video footage circulating on Iranian media showed rescue teams pulling a child alive from under the rubble following the explosion. Further details on the victims and the extent of damage were not immediately available.
BLASTS AMID HEIGHTENED REGIONAL TENSIONS
The incidents come amid heightened tensions between Tehran and Washington over Iran’s nuclear programme and the government’s crackdown on nationwide protests.
Iran’s Army Commander-in-Chief Major General Amir Hatami said enemy efforts to cripple the country’s military and nuclear capabilities had failed, describing their calculations about Iran as “wrong”.
Hatami also warned the United States and Israel against launching any attack, saying Iran’s armed forces were on high alert following Washington’s heavy military deployments in the Gulf.
US President Donald Trump said on Thursday that an “armada” was heading towards Iran, while multiple sources told Reuters that Washington was weighing options that include targeted strikes on Iranian security forces.
Earlier on Saturday, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian accused the United States, Israel and European leaders of exploiting Iran’s economic problems, inciting unrest and providing people with the means to “tear the nation apart”.
Iran has been rocked by nationwide protests that erupted in December over economic hardship, posing one of the most serious challenges to the country’s leadership in nearly three years. At least 5,000 people were killed during the unrest, including about 500 members of the security forces, an Iranian official told Reuters.
A gas leak caused the explosion at a building in Iran’s southern port city of Bandar Abbas on Saturday, killing at least one person and injuring 14 others, the semi-official Mehr news agency reported, citing the local fire department chief. Authorities said the incident was under investigation.
A local official told Iranian news agencies that the explosion occurred in Bandar Abbas, home to Iran’s most important container port, but the cause was not immediately known. Iranian media said the incident was under investigation, without providing further details. Iranian authorities could not be immediately contacted for comment.
The semi-official Tasnim news agency dismissed social media claims that a commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps’ navy had been targeted in the blast, calling the reports “completely false”. Two Israeli officials told Reuters that Israel was not involved in the blasts reported in Iran on Saturday.
Bandar Abbas lies on the Strait of Hormuz, the vital shipping route between Iran and Oman that handles about one-fifth of the world’s seaborne oil trade. The port had suffered a major explosion in April last year that killed dozens and injured more than 1,000 people, with an investigative committee at the time blaming shortcomings in adherence to civil defence and security principles.
GAS EXPLOSION KILLS 4 IN AHWAZ
In a separate incident, a gas explosion ripped through a residential building in the southwestern city of Ahvaz, near the Iraqi border, killing at least five people, Iranian media reported. Earlier reports had put the death toll at four.
State-run Tehran Times said the blast was caused by a gas leak. Video footage circulating on Iranian media showed rescue teams pulling a child alive from under the rubble following the explosion. Further details on the victims and the extent of damage were not immediately available.
BLASTS AMID HEIGHTENED REGIONAL TENSIONS
The incidents come amid heightened tensions between Tehran and Washington over Iran’s nuclear programme and the government’s crackdown on nationwide protests.
Iran’s Army Commander-in-Chief Major General Amir Hatami said enemy efforts to cripple the country’s military and nuclear capabilities had failed, describing their calculations about Iran as “wrong”.
Hatami also warned the United States and Israel against launching any attack, saying Iran’s armed forces were on high alert following Washington’s heavy military deployments in the Gulf.
US President Donald Trump said on Thursday that an “armada” was heading towards Iran, while multiple sources told Reuters that Washington was weighing options that include targeted strikes on Iranian security forces.
Earlier on Saturday, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian accused the United States, Israel and European leaders of exploiting Iran’s economic problems, inciting unrest and providing people with the means to “tear the nation apart”.
Iran has been rocked by nationwide protests that erupted in December over economic hardship, posing one of the most serious challenges to the country’s leadership in nearly three years. At least 5,000 people were killed during the unrest, including about 500 members of the security forces, an Iranian official told Reuters.