Analyst: Rocket engine test likely caused blast in Israel

A mysterious blast heard in central Israel appears to have come during a rocket engine test conducted at a secretive military base associated with the country’s missile program

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates -- A mysterious blast heard in central Israel appears to have come during a rocket engine test conducted at a secretive military base associated with the country's missile program, according to an analyst and satellite images. Video of the incident at Sdot Micha Air Base circulated online last week. Iranian state media seized on it amid its tensions with Israel after a series of attacks targeting its nuclear program and amid negotiations in Vienna over its tattered atomic accord. However, the smoke and flames filmed April 20 appear to be from a rocket engine test, said Jeffrey Lewis, an expert at the James Martin Center for Nonproliferation Studies at the Middlebury Institute of International Studies, who located the site with others. Lewis said the image compared to others of similar tests he and experts have extensively studied. Satellite photos taken by Planet Labs Inc. and analyzed by The Associated Press of a known rocket test stand at Sdot Micha showed char marks and foliage burned away at the site after April 20. However, the surrounding buildings bore no signs of damage. The location also mirrored details of the video posted to social media.