Two Separate Explosions in Iran Leave Five Dead

ISNA News Agency

The Bandar Abbas explosion aftermath.

A series of explosions was reported across Iran on Saturday afternoon, according to Iranian media. Blasts were reported in the port city of Bandar Abbas, as well as in Ahvaz, Karaj, and the Parand district of Tehran.

According to a Reuters report citing local officials, one person was killed and 14 others were injured in the explosion in Bandar Abbas. A further four fatalities were confirmed following blasts in Ahvaz.

Iran International reported that the explosion in Ahvaz was caused by a gas leak, citing the city’s Fire Department chief. Authorities have not yet commented on the causes of the other explosions.

"Following a gas explosion in a four-unit building in Kianshahr, four members of a family, including the father, mother, and their two children, lost their lives," he said.

Reports of an additional explosion in Parand were denied by the Robat Karim County governor, who, according to state-run Mehr News Agency, alleged that the source of widespread smoke reported across the city was "a fire in dried reed beds along the banks of the Shur River" rather than an explosion.

The governor added that "there is no cause for concern for residents" and that relevant authorities are investigating the matter as an "environmentally harmful action."

Israel was not involved in the explosions in Iran, two Israeli officials told Reuters. A separate security source told N12 News that neither Israel nor the United States is currently conducting operations in the region, adding that the blasts were likely the result of an “internal incident”.

Initial reports circulating on social media claimed that members of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps’ (IRGC) naval forces were targeted in the explosion. However, the IRGC denied these claims, stating that its naval headquarters in Bandar Abbas had not been targeted, according to a report by the IRGC-affiliated Fars News Agency.

"No drone attack has occurred on the IRGC Navy's headquarters in Hormozgan, and no building affiliated with this force has been damaged," the IRGC said.

Semi-official Tasnim news agency said that social media reports alleging that a specific IRGC navy commander was targeted in the explosion were "completely false." Tasnim also reported that all residents of the damaged building were evacuated.

“Residents and those injured in the explosion of a residential building in Bandar Abbas have evacuated the building, and our colleagues are looking to discover the cause of the incident," the Bandar Abbas Fire Chief told Tasnim.

The explosions come as the IRGC plans to conduct a live-fire naval exercise in the Strait of Hormuz, along which the port of Bandar Abbas is located.

On Friday evening, the United States Central Command (CENTCOM) released a statement urging the IRGC to conduct the "in a manner that is safe, professional and avoids unnecessary risk to freedom of navigation for international maritime traffic."

CENTCOM additionally noted that "any unsafe and unprofessional behavior near U.S. forces, regional partners, or commercial vessels increases risks of collision, escalation, and destabilisation."

Sources: Reuters, Jerusalem Post



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