Iran's president has visited the wounded after a powerful explosion rocked one of the Islamic Republic's key ports at a facility believed to be linked to a previous shipment of a chemical used to make rocket fuel.
President Masoud Pezeshkian's visit came as the death toll from Saturday's blast at the Shahid Rajaee port near Bandar Abbas in Iran's southern Hormozgan province rose to 40 dead and nearly 1,000 wounded.
As the Iranian military tried to deny the ammonium perchlorate shipment came from China, new videos emerged showing an apocalyptic scene in the still-smoky port.
The crater, several metres deep, was surrounded by smoke so dangerous that authorities were forced to close schools and businesses in the area.
Iranian state television said the fire was under control, adding that rescue teams hoped to have it completely extinguished by Sunday evening. Helicopters and heavy cargo planes flew over the burning port overnight, dumping seawater on the scene.
The head of the Iranian Red Crescent, Pir Hossein Kolivand, gave the death toll and the wounded in a statement posted on the Iranian government website. He said only 190 wounded remained in hospital as of Sunday.
The provincial governor declared three days of mourning.
Private security firm Ambrey says the port received the rocket fuel in March. It was part of a shipment of ammonium perchlorate shipped from China to Iran in two ships, first reported by the Financial Times in January.
The chemical, designed to produce solid fuel for rockets, was planned to be used to replenish Iran's missile stockpiles, which were depleted by direct attacks on Israel during the conflict with Hamas in the Gaza Strip.
Embry said vessel traffic data analyzed by The Associated Press indicated that one of the ships believed to be carrying the chemical was in close proximity in March.
“It is noted that the fire was caused by improper handling of a batch of solid fuel intended for Iranian ballistic missiles,” Embry said.
On Sunday, Iranian Defense Ministry spokesman Reza Taleinik commented for the first time on the claim, denying that rocket fuel had been imported through the port.
“There were (and are) no imported or exported cargo for fuel or military purposes on the port's territory,” he told state television by telephone.
Sourse: breakingnews.ie
