Latest news with #EnrichedUranium
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Iran could resume uranium enrichment 'in a matter of months', UN nuclear watchdog says
Speculation over Iran's capacity to recover from Israeli and US strikes on its nuclear and military sites during its 12-day war with Israel were put to bed on Saturday after the UN nuclear watchdog chief Rafael Grossi told CBS news that Iran could produce enriched uranium 'in a matter of months'. UN nuclear watchdog chief Rafael Grossi says Iran likely will be able to begin to produce enriched uranium "in a matter of months," despite damage to several nuclear facilities from US and Israeli attacks, CBS News said Saturday. Israel launched a bombing campaign on Iranian nuclear and military sites on June 13, saying it was aimed at keeping Iran from developing a nuclear weapon – an ambition the Islamic republic has consistently denied. The United States subsequently bombed three key facilities used for Tehran's atomic program. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi says the extent of the damage to the nuclear sites is "serious", but the details are unknown. US President Donald Trump insisted Iran's nuclear program had been set back "decades". But Grossi, the director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency, said "some is still standing". (FRANCE 24 with AFP) Read more on FRANCE 24 EnglishRead also:Iranian lawmakers vote to suspend cooperation with UN nuclear watchdogNetanyahu declares 'historic' victory while US intel reports Iran nuclear sites not destroyed
Russia Today
5 days ago
- Politics
- Russia Today
US divided on fate of Iran's enriched uranium after strikes
US intelligence officials are divided over the fate of Iran's enriched uranium stockpile following recent US and Israeli airstrikes on key nuclear facilities, the New York Times reported on Thursday. The hostilities began on June 13 when Israel launched strikes on Iran, claiming Tehran was close to developing a nuclear bomb – which has been denied by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and US intelligence. The US joined the campaign on June 22, striking several nuclear facilities. A ceasefire brokered by Washington came into effect on Tuesday and has so far been upheld. US President Donald Trump has said the strikes 'completely and totally obliterated' Iran's nuclear infrastructure. However, US intelligence assessments and international watchdogs reportedly suggest that while the facilities were damaged, Iran's capability to resume its nuclear program remains. US officials said intelligence assessments on the status of Iran's enriched uranium stockpile are inconsistent, with differing views among Iranian officials contributing to the uncertainty, according to the outlet. Parts of the Natanz nuclear facility, where some of the uranium was believed to be stored, were damaged but not destroyed in the US and Israeli airstrikes, the report said, citing US officials. Due to limited access and conflicting assessments, the US intelligence community has not reached a firm conclusion about how much of the material Iran has retained, people familiar with the findings told the NYT. Following a classified Senate briefing on Thursday, several Republican lawmakers stressed that destroying or seizing the stockpile was not an objective of the strikes. 'I didn't want people to think the problem is over, because it's not,' Republican Senator Lindsey Graham told reporters, noting that the nuclear sites were significantly damaged. There is also uncertainty over the original location of Iran's uranium stockpile. Trump said it was at Fordow, while others pointed to Natanz. The IAEA reported that most of it was stored at Isfahan, where Iran operates reactors and nuclear facilities. Some experts believe the stockpile was dispersed across multiple sites. IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi said Iranian officials told inspectors they would relocate the material if it was threatened. The uranium was stored in containers small enough to fit 'into the trunk of an ordinary car,' he added. In the days leading up to the US missile strike on Isfahan, surveillance reportedly shows vehicles moving items into or out of the labs. Grossi said this week he believes much of the uranium remains in Iran's hands. 'I don't know if they moved all of it,' he said. 'But the evidence points to their moving out a lot of it.'
Al Arabiya
7 days ago
- Politics
- Al Arabiya
US hits back at accounts Iran moved enriched uranium
President Donald Trump's administration hit back Wednesday at accounts Iran may have moved enriched uranium before US bombing, as a row grew on how much the strikes set back Tehran's nuclear program. Trump, seeking credit for ordering the military action and then quickly announcing a ceasefire between Israel and Iran, has lashed out angrily at media accounts of a classified report that doubted the extent of damage to Iranian nuclear sites. Another key question raised by experts is whether Iran, preparing for the strike, moved out some 400 kilogram (880 pounds) of enriched uranium -- which could now be hidden elsewhere in the vast country. 'I can tell you, the United States had no indication that that enriched uranium was moved prior to the strikes, as I also saw falsely reported,' White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt told Fox News. 'As for what's on the ground right now, it's buried under miles and miles of rubble because of the success of these strikes on Saturday evening,' she said. Vice President JD Vance, asked about the uranium on Sunday, had sounded less definitive and said the United States would discuss the issue with Iran. 'We're going to work in the coming weeks to ensure that we do something with that fuel,' Vance told ABC News program 'This Week.' The quantity of uranium had been reported by the UN nuclear watchdog, the International Atomic Energy Agency, with which Iran is considering severing cooperation after the Israeli and US strikes on its nuclear program. 'The IAEA lost visibility on this material the moment hostilities began,' the agency's chief, Rafael Grossi, told France 2 television. But he added: 'I don't want to give the impression that it's been lost or hidden.' The US military said it dropped 14 GBU-57 bunker-buster bombs -- powerful 13,600-kilogram (30,000-pound) weapons -- on three Iranian nuclear sites. Trump has repeatedly said that the attack 'obliterated' Iran's nuclear facilities, including the key site of Fordow buried inside a mountain. But an initial classified assessment, first reported by CNN, was said to have concluded that the strike did not destroy key components and that Iran's nuclear program was set back only months at most. Trump's intelligence chiefs also pushed back on Wednesday. CIA Director John Radcliffe in a statement said that new intelligence from a 'historically reliable' source indicated that 'several key Iranian nuclear facilities were destroyed and would have to be rebuilt over the course of years.' The uranium is enriched to 60 percent -- above levels for civilian usage but still below weapons grade.
CNA
7 days ago
- Politics
- CNA
US hits back at accounts Iran moved uranium
WASHINGTON: President Donald Trump's administration hit back on Wednesday (Jun 25) at accounts Iran may have moved enriched uranium before US bombing, as a row grew on how much the strikes set back Tehran's nuclear programme. Trump, seeking credit for ordering military action and then quickly announcing a ceasefire between Israel and Iran, has lashed out angrily at media accounts of a classified report that doubted the extent of damage to Iranian nuclear sites. Another key question raised by experts is whether Iran, preparing for the strike, moved out some 400kg of enriched uranium - which could now be hidden elsewhere in the vast country. "I can tell you, the United States had no indication that that enriched uranium was moved prior to the strikes, as I also saw falsely reported," White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt told Fox News. "As for what's on the ground right now, it's buried under miles and miles of rubble because of the success of these strikes on Saturday evening," she said. Vice President JD Vance, asked about the uranium on Sunday, had sounded less definitive and said the United States would discuss the issue with Iran. "We're going to work in the coming weeks to ensure that we do something with that fuel," Vance told ABC News programme This Week. The quantity of uranium had been reported by the UN nuclear watchdog, the International Atomic Energy Agency, with which Iran is considering severing cooperation after the Israeli and US strikes on its nuclear programme. "The IAEA lost visibility on this material the moment hostilities began," the agency's chief, Rafael Grossi, told France 2 television. But he added: "I don't want to give the impression that it's been lost or hidden." TRUMP LASHES OUT The US military said it dropped 14 GBU-57 bunker-buster bombs - powerful 13,600kg weapons - on three Iranian nuclear sites. Trump has repeatedly said that the attack "obliterated" Iran's nuclear facilities, including the key site of Fordo buried inside a mountain. But an initial classified assessment, first reported by CNN, was said to have concluded that the strike did not destroy key components and that Iran's nuclear programme was set back only months at most. Trump furiously lashed out at the CNN reporter behind the story, taking to his Truth Social platform to demand that the network fire her. Trump also said that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, whom he dubbed "war" secretary, would hold a news conference at 8am on Thursday to "fight for the dignity of our great American pilots" after the media accounts on the efficacy of the strike he ordered. Trump's intelligence chiefs also pushed back on Wednesday. CIA Director John Ratcliffe in a statement said that new intelligence from a "historically reliable" source indicated that "several key Iranian nuclear facilities were destroyed and would have to be rebuilt over the course of years." Iran's government has said that its nuclear facilities were "badly damaged". The uranium in question is enriched to 60 per cent - above levels for civilian usage but still below weapons grade. The IAEA, in a report cited by the United States and Israel to justify their attacks, said that Iran was not complying with obligations but did not find that Tehran was making a nuclear bomb.
