Four people were killed in a gas blast at a residential building in the southwestern city of Ahvaz on Saturday. Separate explosion incidents were reported in the southern port city of Bandar Abbas and in Ahvaz. The exact cause of the Bandar Abbas explosion remains unclear; however, officials said the Ahvaz incident was triggered by a gas leak.
The semi-official Tasnim news agency debunked social media claims that a commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps’ navy was targeted in the blast, calling the reports ‘completely false’.” Visuals from the spot show the building completely destroyed.
Authorities are investigating the explosions. No further details were immediately available regarding the incident.
Bandar Abbas is located on the Strait of Hormuz, the key shipping route between Iran and Oman that handles around one-fifth of the world’s seaborne oil trade.
The explosion in Bandar Abbas comes amid heightened tensions between Iran and the US, following weeks of unrest in the country and renewed Western concerns over Iran’s nuclear programme.
Earlier in the day, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian accused the US, Israel and European leaders of exploiting Iran’s economic problems, inciting unrest and providing people with the means to "tear the nation apart’."
