The massive explosion at the Port of Shahid Rajaee in southern Iran's Hormozgan Province has resulted in eight deaths and 750 injuries, Iranian Interior Minister Eskandar Momeni said on Saturday.
The blast occurred at a gas tank at the Shahid Rajaee section of the Bandar Abbas Port complex on Saturday morning, causing extensive damage to nearby buildings and cars.
According to Iran's Mehr News Agency, as the fire spread to other containers, an additional explosion occurred at around 21:00 local time (about 17:30 GMT), but it was less intense than the initial blast.
In remarks to Fars, Hossein Zafari, spokesman for the National Disaster Management Organization, said the blast was caused by chemical materials in a container at the port.
Meanwhile, the Iranian government's spokeswoman, Fatemeh Mohajerani, warned against any "hasty speculations" about the cause of the incident before relevant authorities complete the investigations.
The Iranian Ministry of Health and Medical Education has announced a state of emergency at the Bandar Abbas Port.
In a post on social media platform X, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian extended sympathy to the victims of the explosion, announcing that he had issued a directive for the investigation into the blast and its cause.
Located in the city of Bandar Abbas, the Port of Shahid Rajaee is one of Iran's largest and most vital shipping hubs. It handles over 55 percent of the country's non-oil imports and exports and manages more than 85 percent of Iran's container cargo, according to state news agency IRNA.
Huge explosion at Iranian port results in 8 deaths, 750 injuries: official
Huge explosion at Iranian port results in 8 deaths, 750 injuries: official
Iran's Islamic Revolution Guard Corps (IRGC) Navy said Tuesday that 25 vessels passed through the Strait of Hormuz over the past 24 hours under its coordination and security protection.
In a statement published by the IRGC's official news outlet, Sepah News, the IRGC Navy said the vessels, including oil tankers, container ships and other commercial vessels, safely transited the strategic waterway after obtaining authorization.
The statement added that the IRGC Navy is "firmly carrying out intelligent control" over the Strait of Hormuz, warning that any "act of aggression" would be met with a "strong and crushing response."
On the same day, the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reported that the U.S. Navy is quietly assisting commercial ships transiting the Strait of Hormuz as the U.S.-Iran negotiations remain uncertain, citing U.S. military officials.
A Greek supertanker carrying 2 million barrels of crude oil was guided by the U.S. Navy as it crossed the strategic waterway off the Omani coast, according to the WSJ report.
It added that the tanker had been stranded in the Persian Gulf since early March and is now heading to India to deliver its cargo.
The U.S. Navy plans to assist about a dozen vessels, including supertankers and container ships, in transiting the waterway over the coming days, according to the report.
The newspaper later clarified that the U.S. Navy's coordination with commercial ships did not represent a resumption of Project Freedom, a military escort operation announced by U.S. President Donald Trump earlier this month and paused within 48 hours.
A spokesman for the U.S. Central Command confirmed that Washington was not resuming Project Freedom.
Iran tightened its grip on the strait beginning Feb 28, when it barred safe passage of vessels belonging to or affiliated with Israel and the United States following their joint strikes on Iranian territory.
The United States has also imposed a naval blockade on the strait, preventing ships traveling to and from Iranian ports from transiting the waterway.
25 vessels transit Strait of Hormuz in past 24 hours: Iran's IRGC
