A large blast accompanied by a fireball lit up the night sky in the city of Beit Shemesh late Saturday, rattling residents.
The state-owned Tomer defense firm later said that the blast was a pre-planned test and that authorities had been informed. However, residents said they had no warning.
The city, near Jerusalem, was hit several times by missiles fired by Iran during the recent war, and residents were on edge amid speculation that fighting could resume.
In a statement, Tomer — which develops engines for rockets and missiles, including the Arrow air defense system — said that the blast was “a pre-planned experiment that was carried out according to plan.”
An unnamed source in the company confirmed to the Kan public broadcaster that it was a controlled, planned explosion, but did not offer an explanation why it was carried out at 11.30 p.m.
Channel 12 reported, without citing sources, that the test involved propellants for rockets, including those with a range of thousands of kilometers.
According Kan, in 2021, there was a similar massive blast at the factory, which the company likewise said was a planned test that caused no injuries.
תיעוד: תושבים באזור בית שמש דיווחו על פיצוץ עז ואש שנראית מרחוק. מראה קצת אפוקליפטי.
מסתבר שמדובר בפיצוץ מבוקר שנעשה בתוך מפעל אזרחי. אין נזק או נפגעים. אפשר להרגע. pic.twitter.com/Xv3qVEFP8Y
— איתי בלומנטל ???????? Itay Blumental (@ItayBlumental) May 16, 2026
Israel and the US are reportedly preparing to renew attacks on Iran if negotiations to end a war that started at the end of February fail to produce a deal.
Israel and the US launched their campaign against Iran on February 28 in a bid to destabilize the regime and destroy its nuclear and ballistic missile capacities. Iran responded with missile and drone strikes across the region, including at Israel, and its proxies in Iraq and Lebanon also carried out attacks, with Israel launching massive airstrikes in Lebanon in response to the Hezbollah terror group’s rocket barrages.
On March 1, nine people were killed and more than 40 were injured in Beit Shemesh by a direct Iranian ballistic missile impact.
A temporary ceasefire was reached between the US and Iran in early April, but with Iran still blockading the Strait of Hormuz, choking global oil supplies, and the US blockading Iranian ports, the situation is volatile.
