The death toll from the powerful explosion that rocked Iran’s biggest port of Bandar Abbas has risen to at least 40, with over 1,000 injured, state media reported on Sunday.
Though authorities are still working to determine the cause of the blast, an Iranian parliament member claimed that Israel was responsible, saying that explosive devices were planted in the shipping containers that caused it.
“Israel was involved in the explosion,” MP Mohammad Siraj told the Rokna news agency on Sunday. “It was not accidental. Clear evidence points to Israeli involvement.”
“There were explosives planted in the container, either in their country of origin or along the transportation route,” Siraj claimed. “We do not rule out the involvement of internal factors in planting the explosives in the containers. The explosion occurred at four different locations.”
Siraj did nor provide evidence to back up his claim. An Israeli official was quoted by Hebrew media Saturday as saying Israel had no part in the blast at the port. Israel’s leadership has not commented on the blast.
Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian visited injured and circled the site in his airplane on Sunday.
“We have to find out why it happened,” Pezeshkian said during a meeting with officials aired by Iranian state television.
Provincial Governor Mohammad Ashouri on Sunday updated the death toll in the blast to 40, Iranian state TV reported. Pir Hossein Kolivand, head of Iran’s Red Crescent society, said that only 190 of about 1,000 injured remained hospitalized on Sunday, according to a statement carried by an Iranian government website. The governor declared three days of mourning.
Saturday’s blast took place in the Shahid Rajaee section of the port, Iran’s biggest container hub, shattering windows for several kilometers around, tearing metal strips off shipping containers and badly damaging goods inside, state media said.
Fire crews had still not fully extinguished the fire, which continued to smolder as of Sunday afternoon, and rescue teams were still working to retrieve bodies from the wreckage.
Authorities described the fire as being under control, saying emergency workers hoped that it would be fully extinguished later in the day. Overnight, helicopters and heavy cargo aircraft flew repeated sorties over the burning port, dumping seawater on the site.
The port’s customs office said in a statement carried by state television on Saturday 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.
The New York Times quoted an individual with ties to Iran’s IRGC, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss security matters, who said that sodium perchlorate had exploded. The compound is a major ingredient in solid fuel for missiles.
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