Iran says it repelled 'extensive and complex' cyber attack

Incident comes a day after deadly blast rocks main Iranian port

Iran repelled a large cyber attack on its infrastructure on Sunday, the head of its Telecommunication Infrastructure Company said. The incident happened a day after a powerful blast at the country's main port and a third round of nuclear talks with the US.

"One of the most widespread and complex cyber attacks against the country's infrastructure was identified and preventive measures were taken," Behzad Akbari said on Monday, according to the semi-official Tasnim news agency, without providing further details.

In recent years, Iran has faced a series of cyber attacks on critical infrastructure, including ports, as well as its nuclear sites. Tehran has typically blamed Israel for these incidents.

The incident was reported after at least 40 people were killed and more than 1,000 injured in an explosion at Bandar Abbas in southern Iran, home to the country's largest commercial port. Several containers exploded after what officials believed to be a fire at a chemical depot.

Chemicals at the port are thought to have fuelled the fires caused by the explosion, the exact cause of which remains unclear. The blast came as Iranian and US delegations held talks in Oman for high-level talks on Tehran's nuclear programme on Saturday, with both sides reporting progress.

While Iranian authorities so far appear to be treating the blast as an accident, it comes against the backdrop of years of shadow war with Israel. In 2021, a large cyber attack on Iranian petrol stations was blamed on Israel.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday repeated calls for Iran's entire nuclear infrastructure to be dismantled. Iran accused him on Monday of trying to dictate US policy in negotiations, after he called for the complete dismantling of Tehran's nuclear programme and for the inclusion of its ballistic missile capabilities in any deal.

"What is striking... is how brazenly Netanyahu is now dictating what President Trump can and cannot do in his diplomacy with Iran," Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said in a post on X.

Israel has not ruled out attacking Iran's nuclear sites in the coming months, despite US President Donald Trump telling Mr Netanyahu that Washington was unwilling to support such an operation, Reuters reported this month.

In April and October last year, Iran attacked Israel with drones, ballistic missiles and cruise missiles after Israeli strikes killed Iranian generals and officials from Tehran's regional proxies.