China backs Iran’s nuclear diplomacy ahead of US talks

A deadly explosion at Iran’s Shahid Rajaei port may be linked to a shipment of ammonium perchlorate, a chemical used in missile fuel, the Associated Press reported Thursday.

The blast, which killed at least 70 people and injured more than 1,000, struck near the terminal of Sina Port and Marine Services, part of Bonyad Mostazafan, a foundation overseen by Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and sanctioned by the US for supporting Iran’s Revolutionary Guard.

Iranian officials have not confirmed the cause, but AP said local reports point to a mysterious cargo and noted the port had recently received chemical components used in ballistic missile fuel. A reddish cloud seen before the blast resembles those from previous explosions involving ammonium perchlorate or ammonium nitrate.

“The cloud likely was nitrogen dioxide, which can be produced when burning ammonium perchlorate or ammonium nitrate,” said Andrea Sella, chemistry professor at University College London. “The reports about the missile fuel shipment suggest it was ammonium perchlorate.”

Surveillance footage showed the reddish cloud seconds before the explosion, similar to the 2020 Beirut port blast and the 1988 PEPCON disaster in Nevada.

Sina’s CEO Saeed Jafari blamed the incident on “a false statement about the dangerous goods and delivering it without documents and tags.” Authorities have restricted access to the site.

"The (JCPOA) was fundamentally flawed because the sanctions sunset, and yet the mandate as to how you're supposed to conduct yourself - not enriching, not weaponizing - that did not sunset," US envoy Steve Witkoff told the Cats and Cosby radio show referring to a 2015 nuclear deal from which President Donald Trump withdrew in 2018.

"So you and I both know, in business, one-way options don't make sense. They're not fair, and that was a one-way option for the Iranians, and it's got to be rectified," Witkoff told interviewers John Catsimatidis and Rita Cosby.

Some containers of imported goods arriving at the Rajai port lack standard codes and numbering, Iran's minister of labor said on Wednesday.

Tehran has put a ban on Iranian media covering last week's explosion at the Persian Gulf port where a huge blast killed at least 70 people and injured more than 1,000, according to official stats.

Iran's judiciary says the families of those who lost their lives in the port blast have been paid blood money as determined by Islamic law.

No figure has been disclosed but the compensation for such instances is currently set at about $15,000 if the deceased is male and half that if they're female.

“What is clear is that this issue of enrichment is key, is central to the agreement. And below that, you have a number of alternatives which they are discussing," International Atomic Energy Agency chief Rafael Grossi said in an interview with U.S. News and World Report.

"I don't think they are looking at a JCPOA by any other name," Grossi added. “It would be something perhaps less sophisticated ... It's something bold, it’s something clear, it’s something straight that will give everybody the assurance that there is no path to a bomb.”

Grossi added that the talks appeared to be progressing.

"This process is gaining momentum, is gaining traction. The conversations are getting more to some technical details, because, of course, this is like an incremental process. It's a conversation."