Iranian TV: Engineer killed in accident at military complex

TEHRAN, Iran (AP) — An unexplained incident occurred at a key Iranian military and weapons development base east of Tehran, the country’s state television reported Thursday, killing an engineer and injuring another employee.

Iran’s Defense Ministry said the “accident” occurred at a research center in the Parchin military complex on Wednesday afternoon. It did not provide any further details on the cause of the accident, but said an investigation was underway. The deceased engineer was identified as Ehsun Ghadbeigi.

Parchin is home to a military base where the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) previously suspected Iran had conducted tests of detonators for nuclear weapons. Iran has long denied seeking nuclear weapons, although the IAEA previously said Iran had conducted “work in support of a possible military dimension to its nuclear program,” which was largely halted in late 2003.

Western concerns about Iran’s nuclear program led to sanctions and eventually Tehran’s nuclear deal with world powers in 2015. The US under President Donald Trump unilaterally withdrew from the agreement in May 2018, leading to a series of escalating attacks between Iran and the US and Tehran abandoning the deal’s production limits. Tehran enriches uranium to 60% purity – its highest level yet and just a small technical step from weapons-grade 90%.

In 2015, the then Director General of the IAEA visited a site in Parchin where a suspected weapons program is being operated. Inspectors took samples for analysis.

Iran’s missile and space programs have been affected by a series of mysterious explosions in recent years. In the summer of 2020, a massive, unexplained explosion occurred in the Parchin area, shaking the capital and sending a huge fireball into the sky near Tehran.