At least 13 killed in Qatar gas explosion

At least 13 people were killed and 66 injured in an explosion at Qatar's largest natural gas facility in the Ras Laffan industrial zone on Sunday night. The country's interior ministry described the incident as a "technical accident". The blast, which occurred at the Barzan local gas supply facility, was felt more than 70 kilometres away in the capital Doha, rattling windows and alarming residents.

Energy Minister Saad Sherida al-Kaabi stated that the explosion was not an act of sabotage or hostile in nature and assured that it would not impact Qatar's liquefied natural gas (LNG) exports. He added that an investigation into the cause was underway. The minister also revealed that the plant had been completely shut down since December 2025 for urgent maintenance and was restarted only two days before the accident.

All fatalities were reported to be Indian and Pakistani nationals. The Indian Embassy in Doha expressed its deepest condolences and said it was in constant contact with Qatari authorities to provide assistance to the affected families.

The Ras Laffan Port is the world's largest artificial harbour and houses the world's largest LNG export facility. Earlier this year, the facility suffered extensive damage from Iranian strikes amid the US-Israel war with Iran, which had halted production. The recent explosion, however, is unrelated to that conflict.