TEHRAN: Firefighters in Iran battled raging fires on Monday at the country’s largest commercial port, two days after a massive explosion killed at least 40 people, state TV reported.
The blast took place on Saturday at Shahid Rajaee Port in Iran’s south near the strategic Strait of Hormuz, a waterway through which one-fifth of global oil output passes.
It killed at least 40 people and injured more than 1,000 others, officials said, after triggering smaller explosions and fires in nearby containers.
Iran’s state TV showed images of firefighters dousing the flames, and said the damage will be assessed after the fire is fully brought under control.
Thick, swirling plumes of smoke rose over the stacked containers at the site, the TV images showed.
It was not immediately clear what caused the explosion but the port’s customs office said it likely resulted from a fire that broke out at the hazardous and chemical materials storage depot.
Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei ordered a probe into the incident to determine if there were “any negligence or intent.”
CCTV images on social media showed the incident began gradually, with a small fire and orange-brown smoke before a fireball erupted.
The images appeared to show the small fire starting among a few containers stacked outside across from a warehouse. A small forklift truck drove past the smoking area and men walked nearby.
About one minute and eight seconds after the small fire and smoke were visible, a fireball erupted as vehicles passed nearby. Men ran for their lives.
President Masoud Pezeshkian on Sunday visited hospitals treating the wounded in the nearby city of Bandar Abbas.
Since the explosion, authorities have ordered all schools and offices in the area closed and urged residents to avoid going outside “until further notice” and to use protective masks.
The New York Times quoted a person with ties to Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss security matters, as saying that what exploded was sodium perchlorate — a major ingredient in solid fuel for missiles.
Defense ministry spokesman Reza Talaei-Nik later told state TV that “there has been no imported or exported cargo for military fuel or military use in the area.”
Russia dispatched specialists to help battle the blazes.
Authorities have declared Monday a national day of mourning, while three days of mourning began Sunday in Hormozgan province, where the port is located.
The blast occurred as Iranian and US delegations met in Oman for high-level talks on Tehran’s nuclear program, with both sides reporting progress.
While Iranian authorities so far appear to be treating the blast as an accident, it also comes against the backdrop of years of shadow war with regional foe Israel.
According to the Washington Post, Israel launched a cyberattack targeting the Shahid Rajaee Port in 2020.
Fires rage 2 days after Iran port blast killed 40
https://arab.news/jjeg4
Fires rage 2 days after Iran port blast killed 40
- The explosion ripped through the port as Iranian and US delegations were meeting in Oman for high-level talks on Tehran’s nuclear program
- While Iranian authorities appear to be treating the blast as an accident, it also comes against the backdrop of years of shadow war with Israel
US proposes 60-day ceasefire for Gaza, plan shows
A US plan for Gaza seen by Reuters on Friday proposes a 60-day ceasefire and the release of 28 Israeli hostages alive and dead in the first week, in return for the release of 125 Palestinian prisoners sentenced for life and remnants of 180 Palestinian dead.
The plan includes sending aid to Gaza as soon as Hamas signs off on the ceasefire agreement.
Dua Lipa, public figures urge UK to end Israel arms sales
- Actors, musicians, activists appeal to PM to ‘end Britain’s complicity in horrors in Gaza’
LONDON: Pop star Dua Lipa joined some 300 UK celebrities in signing an open letter on Thursday urging Britain to halt arms sales to Israel, after similar pleas from lawyers and writers.
Actors, musicians, activists, and other public figures wrote the letter calling on Prime Minister Keir Starmer to “end the UK’s complicity in the horrors in Gaza.”
British Albanian pop sensation Dua Lipa has been vocal about the war in Gaza and last year criticized Israel’s offensive as a “genocide.”
Other signatories include actors Benedict Cumberbatch, Tilda Swinton, and Riz Ahmed, as well as musicians Paloma Faith, Annie Lennox, and
Massive Attack.
“You can’t call it ‘intolerable’ and keep sending arms,” read the letter to Labour leader Starmer, organized by Choose Love, a UK-based humanitarian aid and refugee advocacy charity.
Sports broadcaster Gary Lineker, who stepped down from his role at the BBC after a social media post that contained anti-Semitic imagery, also signed the letter.
Signatories urged the UK to ensure “full humanitarian access across Gaza,” broker an “immediate and permanent ceasefire,” and “immediately suspend” all arms sales to Israel.
“The children of Gaza cannot wait another minute. Prime Minister, what will you choose? Complicity in war
crimes, or the courage to act?,” the letter continued.
Earlier this month, Starmer slammed Israel’s “egregious” renewed military offensive in Gaza and promised to take “further concrete actions” if it did not stop — without detailing what the actions could be.
Last September, the UK government suspended 30 out of 350 arms export licenses to Israel, saying there was a “clear risk” they could be used to breach humanitarian law.
Global outrage has grown after Israel ended a ceasefire in March and stepped up military operations this month, killing thousands of people in a span of two months, according to figures by the Health Ministry.
The humanitarian situation has also sparked alarm and fears of starvation after a two-month blockade on aid entering the devastated territory.
Over 800 UK lawyers, including Supreme Court justices, and some 380 British and Irish writers warned of Israel committing a “genocide” in Gaza in open letters this week.
Israel’s military offensive launched in response to the October 2023 attack has killed 54,084, mostly civilians, in Gaza according to its health ministry, displaced nearly the entire population and ravaged swaths of the besieged strip.
Lebanon takes border measures in coordination with Damascus to curb smuggling
- Discussed developments on the Lebanon-Syria border and ways to enhance cooperation to control it and prevent smuggling operations
- UNIFIL commander says situation along the Blue Line is tense as ‘violations’ continue
BEIRUT: Lebanese and Syrian delegations met in Damascus this week to discuss procedures for controlling cross-border smuggling, especially drug trafficking.
The Syrian Interior Ministry announced that both sides discussed developments on the Lebanon-Syria border and ways to enhance cooperation to control it and prevent smuggling operations.
It said that Maj. Gen. Ahmed Latouf, assistant minister for police affairs, on Tuesday evening met with a Lebanese army delegation headed by Brig. Gen. Michel Boutros.
Chief of the Syrian army’s general staff, Maj. Gen. Ali Al-Naasan and Boutros had previously held a meeting to enhance military coordination between the two countries.
In a statement released by the Syrian Arab News Agency, the interior ministry said the meeting between Naasan and Boutros was part of a series of ongoing discussions between them.
According to the release, the chief of operations in Syria also attended the talks.
A Lebanese military source said that the Lebanese army was enhancing its presence along the land border with Syria and maintaining strict control over areas known for smuggling, noting that similar measures were being taken on the Syrian side.
Two days ago, Hamish Cowell, the UK ambassador to Lebanon, said on X that he had visited the eastern border of Lebanon with Syria the previous week. During his visit, he observed how the Lebanese army’s new forward operating bases supported counter-smuggling efforts and improved border security.
The ambassador commended the soldiers of the Land Border Regiment for their efforts in defending Lebanon, emphasizing that UK support is ongoing.
The UK had previously provided watchtowers to help secure the borders.
The Lebanese army command had clarified to the Syrian side that the watchtowers were to monitor the border, prevent the infiltration of terrorists, and control the smuggling of people, drugs, weapons, and contraband from and into Lebanon.
The army added that equipment installed in the towers was exclusively connected to the Lebanese military command and that cameras were aimed to monitor Lebanese rather than Syrian territory.
The purpose was to observe the movement of people and vehicles outside official border crossings and to prevent infiltration and smuggling activities on the Lebanese side of the border.
Lebanon shares a border with Syria that extends over 350 kilometers, threading through towns, villages, rugged terrain, and mountainous areas.
Much of this border is unmarked, allowing for the smuggling of people, goods, fuel, weapons, ammunition, wanted individuals, and stolen vehicles.
Hezbollah manages dozens of crossings, because the areas around these crossings are supportive environments for the party.
The Lebanese government has identified 136 illegal border crossings between Lebanon and Syria, a number that increased during the Syrian war. In comparison, there are only six official border crossings between the two countries, which are in the northern and eastern regions.
The Army Command announced on Thursday, the day after the Damascus meeting, that it had thwarted an attempt to smuggle a large quantity of drugs and fuel in the area between Yahfoufa and Baalbek. Nine suspects were arrested.
Army units detained 26 Syrians illegally present in the Bekaa region, along with a Lebanese citizen in the Arsal-Baalbek highlands who was trying to smuggle fuel and other materials.
On Lebanon’s southern border, Israeli breaches of Lebanese sovereignty continued.
Israeli army spokesperson Avichay Adraee said on his X account that an air force aircraft struck the Mount Shaqif area, eliminating a Hezbollah operative in southern Lebanon.
The operative was reportedly attempting to reconstruct a site that had previously been used by Hezbollah for fire control and defense.
He said such activity at the site constituted a violation of the understanding between Israel and Lebanon and has been targeted several times in recent weeks.
Adraee said that the army would continue to act to eliminate any threat to Israel.
The warning came as the Lebanese Ministry of Health confirmed the death of “a martyr in an Israeli drone strike … in Nabatieh Al-Fawqa.”
Maj. Gen. Aroldo Lazaro Saenz, the head of mission and force commander of UNIFIL, said that the situation along the Blue Line is tense as a result of ongoing violations and significant risks, and any mistake could lead to serious consequences.
On International Day of UN Peacekeepers, he said: “We welcome the calm that has prevailed since November, but weapons still roar and the challenges remain significant.”
Israeli forces, which still occupy five hills in the Lebanese border area, advanced on Monday night toward Mays Al-Jabal in a serious land breach and set up earthen barriers in the area.
The Lebanese army contacted the five-member committee overseeing the ceasefire agreement and then the next day proceeded to remove the newly erected barrier.
Israel says intercepts missile from Yemen after air raid warning
- “A missile launched from Yemen was intercepted,” the army said
- It comes two days after Israel it intercepted a missile and another projectile
JERUSALEM: The Israeli army said it had intercepted a missile launched from Yemen on Thursday after air raid sirens sounded in the center of the country, with explosions heard over Jerusalem.
“Following the sirens that sounded a short while ago in several areas in Israel, a missile launched from Yemen was intercepted,” the army said in a statement.
It comes two days after Israel’s military said it intercepted a missile and another projectile fired from Yemen, which Iran-backed Houthi militants said they had fired.
The Houthis have repeatedly launched missiles and drones targeting Israel since the Gaza war broke out in October 2023 following the Hamas attack on Israel.
The Yemeni militants, who say they are acting in solidarity with Palestinians, paused their attacks during a two-month Gaza ceasefire that ended in March, but began them again after Israel resumed its military campaign in the territory.
While most of the projectiles have been intercepted, one missile fired by the group in early May hit the perimeter of Ben Gurion international airport near Tel Aviv for the first time.
Israel has carried out several strikes in Yemen in retaliation for the Houthi attacks, including on ports and the airport in the capital Sanaa.
Israeli strike kills one in south Lebanon: ministry
- The ministry said an “Israeli enemy strike” hit a forested area in Nabatiyeh Al-Fawqa
- The Israeli army said it stuck “a Hezbollah terrorist” in southern Lebanon
BEIRUT: Lebanon’s health ministry said an Israeli strike on the country’s south killed one man on Thursday, with Israel saying it struck a member of the Iran-backed Hezbollah.
The attack came despite a ceasefire between Israel and the Lebanese armed group.
The ministry said an “Israeli enemy strike” hit a forested area in Nabatiyeh Al-Fawqa, killing one man.
The Israeli army said it stuck “a Hezbollah terrorist” in southern Lebanon, alleging he was working to restore a site used to manage the group’s “fire and defense array.”
Lebanon’s state-run National News Agency said the man was a “municipal employee” who had been rehabilitating wells when his motorcycle was struck.
Israel has continued to bomb Lebanon despite the November truce that sought to halt more than a year of hostilities with Hezbollah, including two months of open war.
Under the deal, only UN peacekeepers and the Lebanese army are meant to operate in the south, though Israel maintains a presence in five areas it deems strategic.
Lebanon has urged the international community to pressure Israel to halt its attacks and withdraw its forces.
