India, June 22 -- An explosion rocked a factory in Qatar on Sunday, injuring 54 people and leaving 18 others missing, according to the country's Interior Ministry.

The ministry said the blast occurred due to a "technical malfunction" during operations at a facility in Ras Laffan Industrial City, one of Qatar's key energy hubs.

In a statement posted on X, the ministry said: "The total number of injured persons in the incident that occurred at a factory in Ras Laffan Industrial City has reached 54."

It added that the Qatar International Search and Rescue Group of the Internal Security Force (Lekhwiya), in coordination with Civil Defence teams, is continuing search operations for 18 missing persons.

"Further to the previous statement, th...