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Strange blast near iran nuclear plant Original Source Link: (May no longer be active)
http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=worldNews&storyID=7651210http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=worldNews&storyID=7651210
Iran Blast Report Scares Markets, Underscores Fears
Wed Feb 16, 2005 01:41 PM ET
By Amir Paivar and Christian Oliver
TEHRAN (Reuters) - Iranian television sent waves through world financial markets on Wednesday when it reported an explosion along the coast from Iran's only nuclear plant, but officials calmed fears saying the blast was part of construction work.
The Al-Alam state satellite channel, which broadcasts in Arabic, quoted witnesses as saying the explosion may have been caused by an aircraft firing a missile in a deserted area near the town of Dailam, 100 miles from the nuclear plant, or by a fuel tank falling from a plane.
The report caused the U.S. stock market to drop briefly and sent oil prices higher, underscoring world jitters over Iran's nuclear program, which Washington says conceals an effort to build an atomic bomb. Iran says its nuclear program is for electricity generation only.
"This explosion basically sent chills down the spines of futures traders," said Phil Flynn, senior market analyst at Alaron Trading Corp in Chicago.
But Iranian officials settled fears by saying the blast was made by construction workers building a road at the site of a dam at Kowsar, near Dailam.
"What happened was only a natural part of building work. These were heavy blasts carried out for the construction of the dam," Ali Reza Afshar, deputy to the chief of staff of the armed forces, told state television.
Earlier on Wednesday, Israel's Foreign Minister Silvan Shalom said Iran was six months away from having the knowledge it needed to produce a nuclear bomb.
Israel has hinted in the past at possible military action to stop Iran acquiring the bomb. But senior Israeli security officials quickly denied any military involvement in the blast.
An Israeli air strike on the Iraqi reactor Osiraq in 1981 dealt a severe blow to Saddam Hussein's nuclear program.
NUCLEAR REACTOR
The early Al-Alam report said: "A powerful explosion was heard this morning on the outskirts of Dailam port, north of Bushehr province in southern Iran. Witnesses said the explosion was caused by a missile fired from an unknown plane 150 km (90 miles) from the city of Bushehr, where Iran's nuclear reactor is located."
"A local source said the explosion could have been the result of the falling of an empty fuel tank from an Iranian plane," it added.
Al-Alam later dropped any reference to a missile strike from its news bulletins.
Iran's Russian-built 1,000-megawatt nuclear reactor, its only nuclear power plant, is due to start operating in late 2005 and will reach full capacity in 2006.
Russian Atomic Energy Agency chief Alexander Rumyanstev is due to travel to Iran next week to finalize the technicalities of the plant's start-up.
Tehran on Wednesday accused the United States of using satellites "and other tools" to spy on its nuclear sites and threatening to shoot down any aerial surveillance craft.
Reacting to the blast report, a Defense Department spokesman told Reuters: "It is U.S. policy to deal with Iran in a diplomatic manner." The State Department also said it had no information on the blast report. (Additional reporting by Andrew Hammond in Dubai)
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