Explosion at Qatar Ras Laffan gas facility kills 13 workers

Sunday, June 21, 2026Confirmed

World Desk

What we know

An explosion and fire struck Qatar’s Barzan local gas supply facility in Ras Laffan Industrial City on Sunday evening, killing 13 workers and injuring 66 others at the country’s main liquefied natural gas hub north of Doha.

QatarEnergy and Interior Ministry officials described an “operational” or technical accident during restart work after a maintenance shutdown, saying emergency teams contained the blaze. Energy Minister Saad Sherida Al-Kaabi later ruled out sabotage or hostile action. The blast was felt across central Doha more than 70 km away. All 13 dead were Indian or Pakistani nationals; India’s embassy said 12 of those killed were Indian citizens. Officials said LNG export operations would not be disrupted.

What's confirmed

Sunday ~10:30 p.m. local: explosion/fire at Barzan gas supply facility, Ras Laffan Industrial City (QatarEnergy/BBC/The National).
Casualties: 13 dead, 66 injured; none of the injured described as life-threatening in Monday briefings (Peninsula/The National/Al Jazeera).
Nationalities: dead from India and Pakistan (12 Indian per embassy); injured include Qatari and several other nationalities (Peninsula/The National).
Cause stated by officials: technical/operational accident during restart after maintenance; sabotage ruled out (BBC/Al Jazeera/Wikipedia).
Fire brought under control by QatarEnergy emergency response and civil defence; investigation opened (Peninsula/BBC).

What's still developing

Full investigative findings on the restart sequence and equipment failure mode.
Extent of physical damage at Barzan and any longer-term maintenance timeline.
Consular and compensation arrangements for families of the dead and injured foreign workers.

Sources

BBC — At least 13 killed and dozens injured after Qatar gas explosion link
The Peninsula — QatarEnergy confirms 13 dead, 66 injured in Ras Laffan incident link
The National — At least 13 killed and 66 injured in explosion at Qatar’s Ras Laffan gas hub link
Al Jazeera — Explosion at Qatar’s Ras Laffan LNG facility kills at least 13 link
Wikipedia — 2026 Ras Laffan explosion link