Iran port explosion exposes ‘deep vulnerabilities’ in regime’s vital sectors amid unrest concerns

FIRST ON FOX: The monolithic detonation that rocked Iran’s Shahid Rajaee port successful the confederate coastal municipality of Bandar Abbas has exposed the "deep vulnerabilities" of the Islamic Republic’s captious sectors arsenic its concerns implicit interior unrest mount. 

Iranian authorities this week person faced mounting accusations of negligence and an effort to "cover up" decease toll figures and the beardown suspicion it was utilizing a civilian larboard to import explosive materials for the military.

But what remains mostly chartless is the grade of the damage, the economical interaction and however it volition straight impact Iranians already discontent with the Iranian regime. 

IRAN ACCUSED OF 'COVERING UP' DEATH TOLL IN PORT EXPLOSION AMID CONCERNS OF UPRISING

A charred footwear connected scorched crushed during an exigency enactment astatine Shahid Rajaee larboard successful Bandar Abbas, Iran, April 29, 2025. The blast, believed to person originated from hazardous chemicals, killed astatine slightest 70 radical and injured implicit 1,200, according to section sources.  (Rahim/Middle East Images/AFP via Getty Images)

"Rajaee Port is Iran's superior hub for maritime exports and imports, peculiarly for oil-based products," Saeed Ghasseminejad, a elder advisor connected Iran and an adept connected its system with the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, told Fox News Digital. 

Ghasseminejad explained that the confederate larboard accounted for 52% of Tehran’s lipid trade successful presumption of volume, 77% of its concern metals and 85% of each instrumentality shipments, though helium pointed retired it is not Iran's lone large port. 

A MASSIVE EXPLOSION AT AN IRANIAN PORT LINKED TO MISSILE FUEL SHIPMENT KILLS 5, INJURES OVER 700

"At this stage, determination is nary credible harm assessment," Ghasseminejad added, noting each guesses astatine this constituent astir the grade of the harm were speculation based connected images of the harm to the containers and the administrative buildings successful the port. 

But helium noted that "if the harm proves to beryllium extended and severe, it could spot the authorities nether important economical and logistical pressure."

Just 2 days aft the explosion, Tehran claimed larboard operations had returned to normal. Iran says the detonation killed 70, but immoderate sources estimation the toll could beryllium person to 250.

Drone footage of the port showed important damage, including the demolition of the adjacent administrative buildings and a crater near by the explosion.

Smoke fills the entity supra a devastated country of Shahid Rajaee larboard successful Bandar Abbas, Iran, April 28, 2025.  (Rahim/Middle East Images/AFP via Getty Images)

Officials with the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI) besides told Fox News Digital that eyewitnesses person suggested it could instrumentality up to 20 days to extinguish ongoing fires, immoderate of which are believed to beryllium successful the shipping containers. 

"A clearer representation should look successful the coming weeks," Ghasseminejad said. "It is improbable that the larboard is backmost to its mean cognition and afloat capableness fixed the harm to the administrative buildings, the infrastructure, and the information that hundreds of radical moving astatine the larboard are unluckily dead, missing oregon injured. 

"The authorities has the inducement to prevarication arsenic it wants to amusement it has power implicit the situation, but a batch of sources inside Iran successful the concern assemblage differ." 

The Iranian authorities was accused of "covering up" the decease toll this week by the NCRI, which has spoken to eyewitnesses astatine the port, successful a determination to antagonistic interior dissidence. It besides took steps to bounds entree to accusation for not lone section residents but media outlets, and it downplayed the severity of the incident. 

Emergency workers and citizens stitchery astatine a barricade arsenic fume continues to emergence successful Bandar Abbas, Iran, April 28, 2025.  (Rahim/Middle East Images/AFP via Getty Images)

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"Regardless of the last assessment, the detonation underscores the heavy vulnerabilities successful Iran’s captious infrastructure and the regime's incompetence," Ghasseminejad said, "vulnerabilities that are adjacent much acute successful sectors captious to the regime’s survival, specified arsenic crude lipid export terminals and state accumulation facilities. 

"The authorities is present some incompetent and weak, a deadly combination."