Huge blast hits Guards base in Tehran - reports

TEHRAN - A huge explosion hit a military base in the west of the Iranian capital shortly after 1 pm (0930 GMT) on Saturday (12 noon in Manila), media quoted officials as saying, without giving any immediate word on any casualties. The explosion hit "a military base" some 20 kilometres (12 miles) west of the city centre, Alireza Jane, responsible for security issues in the Tehran governor's office, told the ISNA news agency. The blast shattered the windows of residential neighbourhoods in the western suburbs of Tehran, witnesses told AFP. It was heard in the city centre. Hossein Garousi, a lawmaker from the area, said the blast occurred when "a large part of an ammunition depot exploded," parliament's website reported. The arms depot belongs to the elite Revolutionary Guards, according to a statement on their website, which did not give further details. A helicopter and ambulances have been dispatched to the scene, ISNA quoted an official at Tehran's medical emergency centre, Hassan Abbasi, as saying. In October 2010, a blast at a Guards ammunition storage in the western city of Khorramabad killed 18 of its members and left dozens injured. Set up after the Islamic revolution of 1979 to defend it against internal and external threats, the Guards have emerged as a powerful military and economic force in Iran in recent years. — AFP