One person was injured in a ninth Iranian rocket barrage on Sunday toward Israel, which also caused a large fire at a chemical plant in the south of the country.
Magen David Adom (Israel's emergency medical service) reported in a statement that one person was injured as a result of Iran targeting a chemical plant in the industrial zone of Ramat Hovav, near the city of Beersheba (south), with a rocket barrage.
The Israeli military suggested on Sunday that the explosion in the industrial area may have been caused by missile fragments, shortly after detecting a new missile salvo launched from Iran.
The army said, "We estimate that there is evidence of missile fragments."
In a separate statement, Israeli police said, “The fire appears to have been caused by falling ammunition or debris from an interception operation.”
The statement added, "Search operations are continuing to find additional materials and remove any danger to the public."
Amid tight surveillance and a major Israeli blackout, videos circulating on social media showed thick smoke and flames rising from inside the factory, which had a sign indicating that it was designated for storing ammonia.
For its part, the Hebrew newspaper “Maariv” said that firefighting teams were on their way to “Ramat Hovav” to control the fire.
She pointed to “suspected leakage of hazardous materials from the chemical plant.”
For its part, the official Hebrew Broadcasting Authority said that “roads in the Ramat Hovav area were closed, and workers and some Bedouin residents living around the industrial zone were evacuated.”
The Israeli Civil Defense also issued a statement calling on residents of Ramat Hovav to stay in their homes and close their windows due to a suspected leak of hazardous materials from a chemical plant.
The Israeli Ministry of Environmental Protection announced in a statement that, following the damage to the Ramat Hovav area, “an incident suspected to have been caused by hazardous materials is being investigated.”
Meanwhile, police closed two main roads in the area and advised against going to the location until the situation became clearer, according to a statement issued by them.
In this context, the Israeli plant protection company Adama Makhstem said that its factory in southern Israel was hit by an Iranian missile attack or missile fragments, without any injuries.
The company, a subsidiary of China's Syngenta Group, added that the extent of the damage to the factory is not yet known.
Shortly before that, sirens sounded in the cities of Dimona and Beersheba after a rocket barrage was detected from Iran, the ninth since dawn on Sunday.
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