Israeli Satellite Images Show Aftermath of Explosion at Alleged Iranian Missile Factory

JERUSALEM, Israel – A private Israeli satellite-imaging company released photos on Thursday of an alleged Iranian missile production facility that was damaged in an explosion earlier this week.

According to the Tel Aviv-based ImageSat International, the “explosion” occurred at the Iranian “secret missile base of Shahid Hammat Industrial Group.”

The company released before and after satellite images showing damage to the site.

Before & after: An explosion occurred (27 September 2021) at an #IRGC secret missile base of Shahid Hemmat Industrial Group pic.twitter.com/OYnsijeXiq

— ImageSat Intl. (@ImageSatIntl) September 30, 2021

On Monday, Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) said two of its members died from injuries they sustained in an unexplained fire the day before.

The Guard said the fire broke out on Sunday at a “research self-sufficiency center” west of Tehran. At least three of its members were injured and two later died. The statement did not provide further information.

The Guard runs Iran’s Research and Self-Sufficiency Jihad Organization, which the US Treasury sanctioned in 2017 for “researching and developing ballistic missiles.”

Unexplained explosions and fires have struck Iranian industrial and missile sites over the years.

The most notable was in 2011 when an explosion at a missile base near Iran killed 17 people, including Hassan Tehrani Moghadam, who led the Guard’s missile program.

Authorities initially described the incident as an accident but later suspected that Israel was responsible.