Iran port blast death toll rises to at least 46, with more than 1,000 injured

The death toll from a huge explosion that rocked one of Iran’s main ports has risen to 46, authorities said on Monday.

Iranian state television gave the toll from the blast at Shahid Rajaei port, near Bandar Abbas, citing local officials.

A fire is still burning at the site, some two days after the initial explosion on Saturday, as Iran is beginning a third round of negotiations with the United States over its rapidly advancing nuclear programme.

More than 1,000 people suffered injuries in the blast.

Authorities have still not offered an explanation for the explosion.

Private security firm Ambrey said the port received missile fuel chemicals in March.

It was part of a shipment of ammonium perchlorate from China by two vessels to Iran, first reported in January by the Financial Times.

The chemical is used to make solid propellant for rockets and was going to be used to replenish Iran’s missile stocks, which had been depleted by its direct attacks on Israel during the war with Hamas in the Gaza Strip.

The Iranian military denied receiving the chemical shipment.

Social media footage of the explosion saw reddish-hued smoke rising from the fire just before the detonation. That suggests a chemical compound being involved in the blast, like in the 2020 Beirut port explosion.