Post by Tulameen on Feb 17, 2005 11:31:07 GMT -5
Iran blast cause remains mystery
Iranian authorities have been issuing confusing statements about an explosion in the southern province of Bushehr.
The cause of the blast near Daylam remains unclear, but officials are now saying it was caused by a controlled explosion in a dam building site.
Earlier an interior ministry spokesman said it might have been caused by a "friendly fire" incident.
Witnesses reported seeing a missile fired from an aircraft and also that an Iranian plane had dropped a fuel tank.
Iran state TV Al-Alam was the first to break the story, reporting a explosion near the Bushehr nuclear site, possibly caused by a rocket from an aircraft.
Then it changed its story to say the blast occurred near Daylam, around 150km (93 miles) north of Bushehr reactor, and might have been the result of an aircraft accidentally dropping its fuel tank.
Interior ministry spokesman Jahanbakhsh Khanjani told the AP news agency: "An airplane flew over Daylam today. Minutes later, there was an explosion.
"But we have no reason to say it's a hostile attack. There is a big possibility that it was a friendly fire by mistake."
news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/4271011.stm
Iranian authorities have been issuing confusing statements about an explosion in the southern province of Bushehr.
The cause of the blast near Daylam remains unclear, but officials are now saying it was caused by a controlled explosion in a dam building site.
Earlier an interior ministry spokesman said it might have been caused by a "friendly fire" incident.
Witnesses reported seeing a missile fired from an aircraft and also that an Iranian plane had dropped a fuel tank.
Iran state TV Al-Alam was the first to break the story, reporting a explosion near the Bushehr nuclear site, possibly caused by a rocket from an aircraft.
Then it changed its story to say the blast occurred near Daylam, around 150km (93 miles) north of Bushehr reactor, and might have been the result of an aircraft accidentally dropping its fuel tank.
Interior ministry spokesman Jahanbakhsh Khanjani told the AP news agency: "An airplane flew over Daylam today. Minutes later, there was an explosion.
"But we have no reason to say it's a hostile attack. There is a big possibility that it was a friendly fire by mistake."
news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/4271011.stm