Blast and large blaze reported at state-owned warehouse near Tehran
Incident latest in series of mysterious explosions and malfunctions in Iran, many of which Islamic Republic has blamed on Israel
An explosion Monday at a state-owned warehouse outside of Tehran caused a major fire at the site, according to unconfirmed preliminary reports out of Iran.
Footage uploaded to social media showed large billows of smoke above the Iranian factory.
No additional details were immediately available regarding the source of the blast or the purpose of the warehouse, but the site is near factories of several major companies.
Monday’s incident was the latest in a series of mysterious blasts and malfunctions in Iran, many of which have been blamed by Tehran on Israel.
Last month, a massive fire broke out at the state-owned Tondgooyan Petrochemical Co. oil refinery, which serves Tehran. A blast was believed to have struck a pipeline for liquefied petroleum gas at the facility. No additional information was provided then either.
In May, a petrochemical site in southern Iran was hit by an explosion that killed one worker and injured two others. Authorities at the city of Asaluyehin in the Bushehr province said the blast originated in the oxygen transmission pipeline to two local petrochemical complexes, according to state news agency IRNA.
Numerous explosions have been reported over the past few years in complexes vital to Iran’s nuclear program and its energy and military sectors, notably including alleged sabotage at the Natanz nuclear plant.
The most recent such incident was a drone attack last month that reportedly damaged an Iranian nuclear facility in Karaj, said to have been used for assembling centrifuges for uranium enrichment.
