A massive blaze has broken out at an Iranian port, ripping through at least seven ships – the latest in a string of mysterious fires and explosions to hit the country.
Dramatic video purporting to show the blaze shows thick black smoke billowing from the scene at the port of Bushehr – as men desperately try to put out the flames.
The incident is unfolding just 12 miles away from Iran’s only nuclear power station and comes just days after a mysterious blast caused significant damage at a uranium facility in another part of the country.
The plant was developed by Russia and Iran as part of a joint nuclear cooperation agreement.
It is not clear how the ships caught ablaze and no injuries have been reported.
Some reports have suggested that the fire broke out at a shipyard where fibreglass hulls for boats are built.
The fire is the latest in a series of blazes and explosions across Iran – many of which authorities have brushed off as unfortunate accidents
A fire has ripped through at least seven ships in southern Iran today amid a string of blazes and blasts in the country – including one at a nuclear facility
It is not clear how the ships caught ablaze in Bushehr port (smoke pictured), or whether they were military vessels
Plumes of black smoke can be seen rising from one of the ships which caught on fire in the port of Bushehr
Emergency services battled to put out the blaze which tour through seven ships in the port
Emergency services and onlookers used high-powered hoses to damp down the roaring flames
A fire engine can be seen at the scene of a fire which tore through seven vessels in the port of Bushehr
The port in which the ships caught on fire (pictured) is just 20 minutes away from Bushehr Nuclear Power Plant – Iran’s only facility of its kind
Bushehr Nuclear Power Plant (pictured) was developed by Russia and Iran as part of a joint nuclear cooperation agreement
The fire comes amid a string of explosions across Iran – many of which authorities have brushed off as unfortunate accidents.
Experts fear Israel and the US could be behind the attacks and have questioned whether Iranian cyber security breaches could be to blame.
Policy Director of United Against Nuclear Iran Jason Brodsky told Fox News: ‘There is evidence of a concerted campaign underway to thwart Iran’s nuclear program.’
Cyber-intelligence expert and CEO of TrustedSec David Kennedy added: ‘Although many are asking the question, was this a cyber-attack or physical sabotage, the answer could be ‘both.’
‘The most likely suspects are the US and Israel working in tandem.’
It follows an embarrassing blunder last week in which Iranian media quoted a former mayor who dismissed a blast on Friday as ‘explosion at a factory making gas cylinders’.
But other media outlets quickly discovered the mayor in question had been dead for over a year.
Other reports said the explosion actually occurred at a missile and chemical warehouse and the blast injured 11.
It started on June 26 when a factory making cruise missiles and another producing ammunition were hit in Khojir, Tehran, local media reported.
This was then followed by a gas leak at a medical clinic which caused an explosion killing 19 and injuring six on June 30.
Tehran Deputy Governor Hamid Reza Goudarzi told state television that blast was triggered by a gas leak. The fire department said gas canisters caught fire in the clinic’s basement.
Then on July 2, a fire and an explosion occurred at Natanz uranium enrichment plant which develops centrifuges. These are needed to make uranium – and other nuclear weapons.
Power outages then occurred when a fire broke out at a power plant in Shiraz
A fire then broke out on July 4 at the Zergan power plant in the city of Ahvaz in southwestern Iran.
The blaze caused a transformer in the station to explode and ignite the plant – which in turn caused partial electricity outages before it was put out.
Another fire was reported on Sunday at a facility belonging to the Shahid Tondgooyan Petrochemical Company in southwest Iran – but was quickly contained.
Onlookers quickly rushed to put out the fire using hoses as plumes of black smoke erupted around them
President Hassan Rouhani visits the Bushehr nuclear power plant in Iran in 2015
A fire broke out on July 4 at the Zergan power plant (pictured) in the city of Ahvaz in southwestern Iran
On July 2, a fire and an explosion occurred at Natanz uranium enrichment plant (pictured) which develops centrifuges. These are needed to make uranium – and other nuclear weapons
The fire was caused by an oil leak but did not lead to any casualties, Mohsen Beyranvand, the governor of Mahshahr county said, according to IRNA.
This fire occurred shortly after the explosion in the basement of a home in Tehran, injuring one person.
They implied that the injured person worked with the cylinders and this caused the blast to occur.
A gas leak at a medical clinic caused an explosion killing 19 and injuring six on June 30