A fire breaks out for the second time at a car battery factory run by Iran’s Defense Ministry

AP News-Sept 28th2023

TEHRAN, Iran (AP) — A fire broke out Thursday at a car battery factory owned by Iran’s Defense Ministry for the second time in less than a week, state media reported.

No one was injured in the blaze, which erupted in an area where plastic waste is stored, state TV said. Iranian news outlets circulated photos and video footage of a column of black smoke rising into the sky north of the capital, Tehran.

Iran’s regular military and its paramilitary Revolutionary Guard operate several factories across the country, many of which produce civilian goods.

Iran has seen a series of fires and other mishaps in its military facilities over the years, and often accuses its archenemy Israel of sabotage. Last month, Iran said Israel tried to sabotage its ballistic missile program through faulty foreign parts that could explode.

Iran has been under heavy Western sanctions for several years that prevent it from importing a range of machinery and replacement parts, forcing it to build its own or source them on the black market. That has likely made industrial mishaps more common.