Netanyahu says Israel hit part of Iran’s nuclear program

Israel’s prime minister said he struck part of Iran’s nuclear program last month, despite calls from the United States not to do so in strikes in response to the missile attack.

“This is no secret. It has been published,” Benjamin Netanyahu told the Israeli parliament. “There is a particular component in their nuclear program that has been hit.”

He didn’t give details, but last week Axios He reported that a “nuclear weapons research facility” producing plastic explosives was destroyed at the Parchin military complex.

There has been no comment from Iran yet, but Iran has previously stated that Israeli attacks caused limited damage to radar systems and that its nuclear activities are completely peaceful.

Iran has also insisted that it is not seeking nuclear weapons, although evidence collected by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) shows that Iran was engaged in activities related to bomb development as far back as 2003. The agency said Iran has not yet answered important questions about its nuclear activities.

The IAEA also says Iran has produced enough highly enriched uranium to build several nuclear weapons since the United States abandoned the nuclear deal with Netanyahu’s support six years ago and reimposed crippling sanctions.

On October 26, the Israeli military announced that it had conducted “precision strikes on military targets in Iran” in response to the October 1 attack, in which approximately 200 ballistic missiles were launched towards Israel.

The military said the targets included missile production facilities, as well as surface-to-air missile arrays and aerial capabilities, aimed at restricting Israel’s freedom of operations in Iran.

The Iranian military said the attacks caused “limited and minor damage” to many radar systems and that four Iranian officers and one civilian were killed. Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said the impact of the attacks should not be “exaggerated or underestimated.”

Satellite images analyzed by the BBC showed damage to four structures in ParchinAbout 30 km (18.5 mi) east of Tehran.

Experts from the Institute for Science and International Security said three of the structures were related to missile production. The fourth, known as Taleghan 2, had previously been involved in high explosive tests related to the development of nuclear weapons..

Axios’ report stated that unnamed US and Israeli officials said that intelligence services had detected recent activity at the Taleghan 2 facility. “It was presented as research for civilian purposes”.

A former Israeli official said the attack destroyed “sophisticated equipment used to surround the uranium in a nuclear device and design the plastic explosives needed to detonate it,” according to the report.

Benjamin Netanyahu told the Israeli parliament that “a nuclear Iran poses a grave threat to our existence, to the peace agreements we aim to achieve with more of our neighbors, and to global peace.”

“We will be put to the test on our ability to thwart their nuclear ambitions,” he added.

He then spoke of the attack on a “specific component” of Iran’s nuclear program, warning that “the program itself, its ability to operate there, has not yet been impeded.”

Before the Israeli attacks took place, US President Joe Biden had publicly stated that he did not support attacks on Iran’s nuclear or oil facilities.

President Donald Trump, who is expected to take a tougher stance against Iran when he takes office in January, said that he advised Netanyahu to “focus on nuclear first and think about the rest later.”

Last week, Iranian President Massoud Pezeshkian told IAEA chief Rafael Grossi that Iran was determined to resolve “doubts and uncertainties” regarding its nuclear activities.

Mr. Grossi visited Tehran this week ahead of a meeting of the IAEA executive board, where Britain, France and Germany are expected to adopt a resolution criticizing Iran’s cooperation.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi warned that Tehran would “take countermeasures and take new actions in our nuclear program” in response to such a decision.

He also strongly denied media reports that Iran’s UN Ambassador Amir Saeed Iravani had met with Trump ally Elon Musk to defuse US-Iran tensions.

“We are still waiting for the new US administration to clarify its policies and we will adjust our own policies accordingly. “Right now is neither the time nor appropriate for such meetings,” he said.