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Amnesty Accuses Iran of 'Sinister Crackdown' after Deadly Port Blast

The explosion devastated the port. Planet Labs PBC/AFP
The explosion devastated the port. Planet Labs PBC/AFP
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Amnesty Accuses Iran of 'Sinister Crackdown' after Deadly Port Blast

The explosion devastated the port. Planet Labs PBC/AFP
The explosion devastated the port. Planet Labs PBC/AFP

Amnesty International accused Iranian authorities Wednesday of carrying out a "sinister crackdown" on media outlets to conceal the truth about a deadly blast at the country's main commercial port.
At least 70 people were killed and more than 1,000 injured in Saturday's explosion and ensuing fire in the southern port of Shahid Rajaee, state media reported.
Iranian officials have attributed the explosion to negligence without giving a fuller explanation, AFP said.
The Tehran prosecutor's office has filed charges against several media and social media users over certain "narratives" put forward about the explosion, reports have said.
"Iranian authorities have claimed that some media outlets and social media users have spread 'false information and lies' about the explosion and 'disturbed the psychological security of society'. Authorities have filed criminal cases against multiple media outlets and individuals," Amnesty said.
"The international community must condemn Iranian authorities' sinister crackdown and press them to stop threatening, intimidating and prosecuting journalists for their work. Suppressing media reporting indicates that the state is attempting to conceal the truth from the public."
Amnesty called for an independent probe to ascertain what happened and emphasized that any officials responsible should not enjoy impunity.
"Independent monitors must be given unhindered access to the site, survivors and other witnesses to investigate what caused the catastrophic explosion and who was responsible, including any involvement by state officials," it said.
The New York Times has cited a person with ties to Iran's Revolutionary Guards as saying what exploded was sodium perchlorate, which the newspaper said is a major ingredient in solid fuel for missiles.
The port's customs office said the blast may have started in an area where hazardous chemicals were stored.
Interior Minister Eskandar Momeni said there were "shortcomings, including noncompliance with safety precautions and negligence".
Some social media users have compared the explosion to the devastating Beirut port blast of August 4, 2020 -- which killed more than 220 people and was blamed on tons of ammonium nitrate fertilizer.
The US-based Committee to Protect Journalists charged this week that Iran was implementing a "suppression of press freedom (that) denies the public vital information in a time of crisis."

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World

French, Japanese Ships Cross Strait of Hormuz in First Since War

A cargo ship in the Gulf, near the Strait of Hormuz, as seen from northern Ras al-Khaimah, near the border with Oman’s Musandam governance, amid the US-Israeli conflict with Iran, in United Arab Emirates, March 11, 2026. (Reuters)
A cargo ship in the Gulf, near the Strait of Hormuz, as seen from northern Ras al-Khaimah, near the border with Oman’s Musandam governance, amid the US-Israeli conflict with Iran, in United Arab Emirates, March 11, 2026. (Reuters)
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French, Japanese Ships Cross Strait of Hormuz in First Since War

A cargo ship in the Gulf, near the Strait of Hormuz, as seen from northern Ras al-Khaimah, near the border with Oman’s Musandam governance, amid the US-Israeli conflict with Iran, in United Arab Emirates, March 11, 2026. (Reuters)
A cargo ship in the Gulf, near the Strait of Hormuz, as seen from northern Ras al-Khaimah, near the border with Oman’s Musandam governance, amid the US-Israeli conflict with Iran, in United Arab Emirates, March 11, 2026. (Reuters)

One French- and another Japanese-owned vessel are among a handful of vessels to have crossed the war-torn Strait of Hormuz, maritime tracking data showed Friday.

The passage, a vital maritime route for oil and liquified natural gas, has been virtually blocked by Iran since the start of the war, said AFP.

But both ships made the crossing on Thursday, according to ship tracking company Marine Traffic's website.

The Maltese-flagged Kribi belonging to the French maritime transport group CMA CGM crossed the waterway to leave the Gulf on Thursday afternoon, Marine Traffic's data showed.

By early Friday, it was off Muscat, Oman, still broadcasting the message "owner France" on its transponder system in the field usually used to give the destination.

The vessel's navigation data showed it had crossed via an Iranian-approved route through its waters, dubbed the "Tehran Toll Booth" by leading shipping journal Lloyd's List.

- Southern route -

In addition, three tankers -- including one co-owned by a Japanese company -- crossed the Strait of Hormuz on Thursday by taking an alternative, southern route.

They hugged close to the shore of Oman's Musandam Peninsula -- a first in nearly three weeks according to Lloyd's List.

Before the war, which started more than a month ago, about a fifth of global oil and liquefied natural gas (LNG) passed through the Strait.

All three ships signaled they were an "OMANI SHIP" in the message broadcast by their transponder as they crossed the strait.

The Sohar LNG, which was empty when crossing, is co-owned by Japanese shipping company Mitsui O.S.K.

That makes it the first Japanese vessel to exit the Gulf since the start of the war, according to a company statement quoted by Japanese media.

The Hong-Kong flagged New Vision, which crossed the strait on March 1 right after the war started, is expected in the French port of Le Havre on Saturday evening.

Since the conflict started however, that has dwindled to a trickle as Iran selectively attacks ships and energy facilities throughout the Gulf in retaliation for US and Israeli attacks.

A few commercial ships crossing the Strait of Hormuz recently have passed through the Iranian-approved route in the north of the waterway.

- Down to a trickle -

Just 221 commodities vessels have crossed the Strait of Hormuz since March 1, some more than once, according to Kpler data up to Friday morning.

In peacetime, the same waterway handles around 120 daily transits, according to Lloyd's List.

Of the vessels that made the crossing, 60 percent either came from Iran or were heading there.

It was not clear from the data how many had been cleared to make the crossing by Tehran.

But it did show that, among the 118 crossings by ships carrying cargo, 37 had left the Gulf carrying crude oil.

Most of those oil tankers -- 30 of them -- came from Iran or sailed under the Iranian flag. And most ships carrying Iranian oil did not specify their destination on their transponder.

Of those who did, all but one reported they were heading to China.

In the early days of the war, transponder data showed dozens of ships broadcasting messages such as "Chinese crew" or "Chinese owner" in the field usually used for their destination.

This appeared to be an attempt by the ships to avoid being targeted by Iran.

World

Iran Executes Two Linked to Opposition Group

Executions in Iran have surged in recent years - AFP
Executions in Iran have surged in recent years - AFP
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Iran Executes Two Linked to Opposition Group

Executions in Iran have surged in recent years - AFP
Executions in Iran have surged in recent years - AFP

Iran on Saturday executed two men it said were convicted of links to an opposition group, the People's Mojahedin Organization of ‌Iran, and ‌of carrying out armed ‌attacks, ⁠domestic media reported.

The ⁠executions were the latest in recent days of individuals with PMOI links.

The PMOI confirmed ⁠Saturday's executions, saying ‌in ‌a statement that Iran was "trying ‌to hide its ‌weakness by executing political prisoners, especially PMOI members and supporters." Four PMOI ‌members were executed earlier this week, ⁠it ⁠said.

The group said the two men executed on Saturday were arrested in January 2024 and had their death sentences upheld in December 2025.

World

Earthquake Kills 8 Members of Same Family near Afghan Capital

Previous earthquake in Afghanistan (Archive-Reuters)
Previous earthquake in Afghanistan (Archive-Reuters)
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Earthquake Kills 8 Members of Same Family near Afghan Capital

Previous earthquake in Afghanistan (Archive-Reuters)
Previous earthquake in Afghanistan (Archive-Reuters)

An earthquake that struck Afghanistan overnight killed eight members of the same family in Kabul province, the health ministry said on Saturday.

The 5.8-magnitude quake struck at 8.42 pm (1612 GMT) on Friday at a depth of 186 kilometers (115 miles) at the epicenter in northeastern Badakhshan province, according to the US Geological Survey (USGS).

Shaking was felt in multiple parts of the country, including the capital Kabul, according to AFP journalists.

"In the Gosfand Dara area of Kabul Province, eight members of a family died as a result of the earthquake," Health Ministry spokesman Sharafat Zaman said in a message to media.

He added that a child aged around two years old was the only survivor from the household and the country's disaster management agency said the boy had been injured in the tremor.

Afghanistan is frequently jolted by earthquakes, particularly along the Hindu Kush mountain range near where the Eurasian and Indian tectonic plates meet.

In August, a shallow magnitude 6 earthquake wiped out mountainside villages and killed more than 2,200 people in eastern Afghanistan, making it the deadliest tremor in the country's recent history.