Iran's president visits those injured in port explosion that killed at least 28 people

DUBAI – Iran's president visited those injured Sunday successful a immense explosion that rocked 1 of the Islamic Republic's main ports, a installation purportedly linked to an earlier transportation of a chemic constituent utilized to marque rocket propellant.

The sojourn by President Masoud Pezeshkian came arsenic the toll from Saturday's blast astatine the Shahid Rajaei larboard extracurricular of Bandar Abbas successful confederate Iran's Hormozgan state roseate to 28 killed and astir 1,000 others injured.

While Iran's subject sought to contradict the transportation of ammonium perchlorate from China, caller videos emerged showing an apocalyptic country astatine the still-smoldering port. A crater that appeared meters heavy sat surrounded by burning fume truthful unsafe that authorities closed schools and businesses successful the area.

Iranian authorities tv described the occurrence arsenic being nether control, saying exigency workers hoped that it would beryllium afloat extinguished aboriginal Sunday. Overnight, helicopters and dense cargo craft flew repeated sorties implicit the burning port, dumping seawater connected the site.

Pir Hossein Kolivand, caput of Iran’s Red Crescent nine offered the decease toll and fig of injured successful a connection carried by an Iranian authorities website, saying that lone 190 of the injured remained hospitalized connected Sunday. The provincial politician declared 3 days of mourning.

Private information steadfast Ambrey says the larboard received rocket substance chemic successful March. It was portion of a shipment of ammonium perchlorate from China by 2 vessels to Iran, archetypal reported successful January by the Financial Times. The chemic utilized to marque coagulated propellant for rockets was going to beryllium utilized to replenish Iran’s rocket stocks, which had been depleted by its nonstop attacks connected Israel during the warfare with Hamas successful the Gaza Strip.

Ship-tracking information analyzed by The Associated Press enactment 1 of the vessels believed to beryllium carrying the chemic successful the vicinity successful March, arsenic Ambrey said.

“The occurrence was reportedly the effect of improper handling of a shipment of coagulated substance intended for usage successful Iranian ballistic missiles,” Ambrey said.

In a archetypal absorption connected Sunday, Iranian Defense Ministry spokesperson Gen. Reza Talaeinik denied that rocket substance had been imported done the port.

“No benignant of imported and exporting consignment for substance oregon subject exertion was (or) is successful the tract of the port,” helium told authorities tv by telephone. He called overseas reports connected the rocket substance baseless — but offered nary mentation for what worldly detonated with specified unthinkable unit astatine the site. Talaeinik promised authorities would connection much accusation later.

It’s unclear wherefore Iran wouldn’t person moved the chemicals from the port, peculiarly aft the Beirut larboard blast successful 2020. That explosion, caused by the ignition of hundreds of tons of highly explosive ammonium nitrate, killed much than 200 radical and injured much than 6,000 others. However, Israel did people Iranian rocket sites wherever Tehran uses industrial mixers to make coagulated fuel — meaning perchance that it had nary spot to process the chemical.

Social media footage of the detonation connected Saturday astatine Shahid Rajaei saw reddish-hued fume rising from the occurrence conscionable earlier the detonation. That suggests a chemic compound being progressive successful the blast, similar successful the Beirut explosion.

Meanwhile connected Sunday, Russian President Vladimir Putin deployed respective exigency craft to Bandar Abbas to supply assistance, Iran's state-run IRNA quality bureau reported.

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