Gunpowder factory explosion kills two as Iran faces string of deadly blasts

Firefighters working at the site of an explosion at the Rajaei port in Bandar Abbas, Iran, April 27, 2025.
Firefighters working at the site of an explosion at the Rajaei port in Bandar Abbas, Iran, April 27, 2025.

A new explosion at a gunpowder company operating under Iran's top security body in central Isfahan province killed two people on Tuesday, marking the latest in a wave of blasts across the country that have killed at least 73 people in just four days.

The incident occurred at the Ava Nar Parsian Chemical Industries warehouse in the Meymeh district of Isfahan province, according to the provincial crisis management office.

Emergency services and firefighters were dispatched to the site. No official cause has been announced.

Screengrab from state media footage showing the aftermath of the explosion at the Ava Nar Parsian warehouse in Meymeh, Isfahan province, on 29 April 2025.
Screengrab from state media footage showing the aftermath of the explosion at the Ava Nar Parsian warehouse in Meymeh, Isfahan province, on 29 April 2025.

The blast comes amid a wave of explosions across Iran, including a deadly fire at a fuel depot in Zahedan on Monday that killed one person and critically injured two others, according to the local rights group Hal Vash.

Over the past four days, at least 73 people have been reported killed in similar incidents nationwide, including 70 killed in Saturday’s massive explosion at Rajaei port in the southern city of Bandar Abbas.

The site of Tuesday’s blast, Ava Nar Parsian, according to its website, manufactures fireworks and gunpowder and operates under the supervision of Iran’s National Security Council—the country’s highest decision-making body on security matters.

However, investigations by Iran International suggest the company may also be linked to Iran's security and military apparatus.

One of Ava Nar Parsian’s top executives, Damoun Beheshtnejad, previously held a managerial position at Nargostar Sepahan, another chemical facility in Isfahan that was the site of a major explosion in June 2021.

At the time, British newspaper The Guardian reported that the complex housed the Iran Aircraft Manufacturing Industrial Company (HESA), a key player in the Islamic Republic’s drone program.

According to official company filings, certain decisions at Ava Nar Parsian fall under the authority of the "Intelligence Protection Organization for Weapons and Ammunition Management of Isfahan Province." The company is licensed to produce, trade, import, and export commercial, industrial, and chemical explosives.