Iranian state media highlighted a “powerful explosion” that they said took place at a “sensitive Israeli missile factory” during a test.
A similar report appeared in Haaretz, and it appears Iranian media took their information from there.
انفجار غامض منذ قليل شمالي اسرائيل pic.twitter.com/Z8ifNZAyij
— إيدي كوهين אדי כהן (@EdyCohen) April 20, 2021
The Iranian reports come in the wake of Iran accusing Israel of “nuclear terrorism” for an incident at the Natanz enrichment facility earlier this month, a day after The New York Times ran an article about Iran being “rattled” by “Israeli strikes.” The incident thus occurred at a sensitive time, and some pro-Iranian voices online mocked Israel for the explosion.
Tasnim quoted pro-Hamas Palestinian media as referring to the “terrible explosion.” It said it took place at a “sensitive military-industrial site in the Gush Dan area.” It quoted eyewitnesses as seeing flames at a “great height.”
It noted that the “Zionist regime” had not commented on it but that “Zionist sources” had said the site was responsible for the production of advanced weapons of war, including various missiles.
Nevertheless, Haaretz said that the explosion was the result of a routine test in central Israel at the Tomer factory for advanced weapons.
Video posted on April 20 shows a large fiery explosion, similar to the kinds of explosions that take place when munitions explode. Similar types of explosions caused by munitions have happened in Iraq and Ukraine in recent years. Arabs 48, an Arabic site, said that the explosion happened near Ramle.
Last year, Calcalist referred to Tomer as a company owned by the government that is involved in rocket propulsion. It said it was developing “secret rocket technology.”