UPDATE 3-One person killed, 14 hurt in blast in Iranian port of Bandar Abbas, Iranian media reports

Iran has been rocked by nationwide protests that erupted in December over economic hardship and have posed one ⁠of the toughest challenges to ‌the country's clerical rulers. At least 5,000 people were killed in the protests, including 500 members of the security forces, an Iranian official told Reuters.

At least one person was killed and 14 injured in an explosion in the southern Iranian ‌port of Bandar Abbas on Saturday, a local official told Iranian news agencies, but the cause of the blast was not known.

The semi-official Tasnim news agency said that ⁠social media reports alleging that a Revolutionary Guard navy commander had been targeted in the explosion were "completely false". Iranian media said the blast was under investigation but provided no further information. Iranian authorities could not immediately be contacted for comment.

Separately, four ​people were killed after a gas explosion in the city of Ahvaz near the Iraqi border, according to ‍state-run Tehran Times. No further information was immediately available. Two Israeli officials told Reuters that Israel was not involved in Saturday's blasts, which come amid heightened tensions between Tehran and Washington over Iran's crackdown on nationwide protests and over the country's nuclear programme.

The Pentagon did not immediately ⁠respond ‌to a request for comment. U.S. President ⁠Donald Trump said on January 22 an "armada" was heading toward Iran. Multiple sources said on Friday that Trump was weighing options against Iran ‍that include targeted strikes on security forces.

Earlier on Saturday, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian accused U.S., Israeli and European leaders of exploiting Iran's economic ​problems, inciting unrest and providing people with the means to "tear the nation apart". Bandar Abbas, home to Iran's ⁠most important container port, lies on the Strait of Hormuz, a vital waterway between Iran and Oman which handles about a fifth of the ⁠world's seaborne oil.

The port suffered a major explosion last April that killed dozens and injured over 1,000 people. An investigative committee at the time blamed the blast on shortcomings in adherence to principles of civil defence and ⁠security. Iran has been rocked by nationwide protests that erupted in December over economic hardship and have posed one ⁠of the toughest challenges to ‌the country's clerical rulers.

At least 5,000 people were killed in the protests, including 500 members of the security forces, an Iranian official told Reuters.

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