Latest news with #Vahidi
Saba Yemen
24-06-2025
- Politics
- Saba Yemen
Advisor to IRGC Commander: We Attacked Most Important U.S. Base in Region
Tehran - (Saba): The advisor to the commander of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), Brigadier General Vahidi, confirmed that Iranian forces attacked the most important American base in the region on Monday. According to Iran's Mehr News Agency, the advisor said on Tuesday that 'the main air operations of U.S. warplanes were launched from the base targeted by Iran.' He added, 'Iran has shown that it will firmly respond to any aggression from any party.' On Monday evening, the Iranian armed forces launched a missile attack on the American Al-Udeid Air Base in Qatar as part of Operation 'Bushra al-Fath' (Glad Tidings of Victory), in response to the U.S. aggression against Iran. Whatsapp Telegram Email Print
Forbes
23-06-2025
- Politics
- Forbes
Could Iran Really Make A Nuclear Weapon?
A picture taken on August 20, 2010 shows an Iranian flag fluttering at an undisclosed location in ... More the Islamic republic next to a surface-to-surface Qiam-1 (Rising) missile which was test fired a day before Iran was due to launch its Russian-built first nuclear power plant. Iranian Defence Minister Ahmad Vahidi said the missile was entirely designed and built domestically and powered by liquid fuel. AFP PHOTO/VAHID REZA ALAEI (Photo by Vahidreza ALAEI / AFP) (Photo by VAHIDREZA ALAEI/AFP via Getty Images) Whether Iran has actively sought a nuclear weapon remains unanswered, but there is no doubt it pushed the limits of its enrichment program too far, and not by a little. Information that proves this comes from several sources, most importantly the International Atomic Energy Agency, watchdog for the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. The IAEA is the only external body with the authority to conduct actual on-site inspections of Iran's nuclear facilities while it remains a member of the NPT. Agency teams continued such visits as recently as one week before Israeli attacks began. Experts consider it a point of key importance that the Iranian regime, despite decades of evasion and deception regarding IAEA requests for information, hasn't withdrawn from the NPT. The only country to have ever done so is North Korea, which ended its membership in 2003 and conducted its first nuclear test three years later. Uranium Enrichment Levels And What They Mean Uranium enrichment involves increasing the percentage of uranium-235, the fissile isotope able to create a nuclear chain reaction. U-235 comprises only a very minor portion, 0.7%, of natural uranium, with the rest being U-238. Because these two isotopes have nearly identical chemical behavior, they have to be separated mechanically. This is done by first converting uranium into a gas (uranium hexafluoride, UF6), then feeding it into rapidly spinning centrifuges that force the heavier U-238 toward the outside, leaving U-235 nearer the center. Because the difference in weight is extremely small, the process isn't quick. Depending on centrifuge technology, it can take six months to a year to achieve 5% enrichment, typical for low-enriched fuel in nuclear power reactors. TEHRAN, IRAN - APRIL 8: Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad (C) visits the Natanz uranium ... More enrichment facilities April 8, 2008 200 miles (322 km) south of the Tehran, Iran. Ahmadinejad announced on Iranian state television during the visit that Iran has begun the installation of some 6,000 new centrifuges, adding to to the 3,000 centrifuges already at the facility. (Photo by the Office of the Presidency of the Islamic Republic of Iran via Getty Images) Several more months are needed to reach 20%, the lower threshold to highly enriched uranium. This is often used by research reactors that produce medical isotopes and industrial materials. A few such reactors for highly specialized uses can utilize 60%, which requires an additional month to achieve. At this point, mere weeks or even days are needed to reach 90%, the lower limit of weapons grade. The 90% figure is no magic number but more a metric of high explosive probability and efficiency. To understand this, it helps to know that the Hiroshima weapon had an enrichment level as low as 80%, with only 1.4% of the fuel having detonated. Admittedly, it would seem absurd to call this bomb, which destroyed 90% of the city and killed many tens of thousands of people, 'inefficient.' But at today's enrichment levels (93%-95%), the weapon would have been immensely more destructive. The Threat of Iran's Enrichment Capability Latest data from the IAEA leaves little doubt about the potential threat Iran represents. This has built up especially since the first Trump Administration withdrew in 2018 from the Iran nuclear deal, known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, signed under President Barack Obama in 2015. With U.S. departure from the deal, the Iranians began to cut back on cooperating with IAEA inspectors. In 2021, Iran revealed its plan for taking enrichment from 20% to 60%, and soon afterward ceased to provide any further details on its fuel-making program. In early 2023, the IAEA discovered particles enriched to as high as 83.7% at its Fordow Plant, built inside a mountain some 300 ft underground and recently targeted by U.S. bombers. Then, in late 2024, inspectors concluded the Iranians had begun rapidly increasing its stockpile of 60% uranium. Though none of Iran's research reactors can use 60%, the IAEA estimated that more than 400 kg had been produced by May 2025, a strikingly large amount. The most logical conclusion was also the most unwelcome. As expressed in an analysis by the non-partisan Institute for Science and International Security, there could be no civilian use for so much material, not even as bargaining leverage in negotiations. 'One has to conclude,' the ISIS states, that the intention of the Iranians 'is to be prepared to produce large quantities of WGU [weapons grade uranium] as quickly as possible.' How Quickly Could Iran Have Conceivably Made A Bomb? Experts at ISIS believe Iran could convert its 60% stock into roughly 230 kg of weapons grade fuel in as little as 3 weeks. This would be enough for 9 nuclear weapons and would take place at Fordow. FORDOW UNDERGROUND COMPLEX, IRAN — JUNE 20, 2025: 01 Maxar Satellite Imagery shows a clear overview ... More of the Fordow underground fuel enrichment facility prior to the most recent airstrikes. The undisturbed terrain and tunnel entrances are seen before any visible impact damage occurred. Please use: Satellite image (c) 2025 Maxar Technologies. A more sobering figure is that 25 kg, sufficient for a single weapon, could be produced in as little as 2-3 days, were operations not halted by wartime attacks. Whether this may have been done is unknown. Satellite imagery strongly suggests the 60% material was removed from Fordow before or shortly after Israeli attacks began. Fuel alone, however, does not make a weapon. Have the Iranians pursued actual weapon design, even acquiring materials for a physical bomb? Intelligence reports have suggested this was indeed a goal in the early 2000s but likely ended in 2003. That was when the IAEA uncovered clear evidence of a clandestine nuclear program that flatly violated its obligations under the NPT. Whether Tehran has since tried to restart the effort to physically assemble a nuclear device remains a source of debate. The IAEA appears to believe this is not the case. At the same time, they suggest that the stock of 60% enriched uranium has been disseminated to a number of sites for protection. It is obvious that Iran has taken its enrichment levels far beyond any conceivable peaceful use, including as leverage in any future nuclear negotiation. Whether its capabilities have been greatly reduced by U.S. and Israeli attacks, they are not likely to have been destroyed. It has the know-how to rebuild advanced centrifuges and has almost certainly preserved significant portions of its most highly enriched fuel. The saga of uncertainty about Iran and the bomb may have entered a new stage but is far from over.
Express Tribune
14-06-2025
- Politics
- Express Tribune
Nevatim, Tel Nof, Ovda airbases targeted in Iranian missile strikes, IRGC claims
Listen to article Iran has launched a large-scale retaliatory strike on Israeli military targets in what it calls Operation True Promise III, a senior Iranian commander announced Friday night. The escalation comes just hours after a deadly Israeli airstrike hit residential areas and strategic facilities in Tehran and elsewhere, killing several top Iranian military leaders and nuclear scientists. Brigadier General Ahmad Vahidi, a senior advisor to the commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), told Iranian state television that the operation targeted three Israeli airbases believed to have been involved in launching attacks on Iran. Speaking to Tasnim News, General Vahidi said missiles struck Nevatim and Ovda airbases—key Israeli military installations said to house command-and-control systems and electronic warfare capabilities—as well as Tel Nof airbase near Tel Aviv. Additional strikes reportedly targeted Israel's Ministry of Defense and military-industrial sites in central Tel Aviv. Vahidi further said that 150 targets were identified and hit in a multi-phase assault involving hundreds of ballistic missiles, which it said managed to penetrate Israel's multi-layered air defense system. The Iranian assault follows an early morning Israeli attack on June 13 that killed several senior military officials, including Major General Mohammad Hossein Baqeri, Chief of Staff of Iran's Armed Forces, and Major General Hossein Salami, commander of the IRGC. At least six Iranian nuclear scientists were also reported killed. In a televised statement, Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei condemned the Israeli attack and vowed severe retribution. 'With this crime, the Zionist regime has prepared for itself a bitter, painful fate, which it will definitely see,' he said. The Israeli government has not yet issued an official response to Iran's claims.
Egypt Independent
14-06-2025
- Politics
- Egypt Independent
Iranian Revolutionary Guards announce missile strikes targeting 150 sites in Israel
The top advisor to the Commander-in-Chief of the Iranian Armed Forces, Brigadier General Ahamd Vahidi, discussed the extensive missile strikes launched by Iran's Islamic Revolution Guards Corps against Israel on Friday evening, as part of a military operation code-named 'Promise of Truth III.' Vahidi explained that the highly precise operation targeted vital and strategic sites deep within Israeli territory and took place across multiple stages, according to what he announced in an interview broadcast on Iranian state television. The Iranian military official confirmed that the strikes included the Nevatim Air Base, which he described as one of the pivotal bases of the Israeli Air Force, where F-35, F-16, and F-15 fighter jets were stationed, in addition to cargo and refueling aircraft, command and control centers, and units specialized in electronic warfare. The attacks included the Israeli Ministry of Defense and some military industrial facilities used in the manufacture of weapons and military equipment targeting the people of the region, he said. Vahidi added that the attacks struck over 150 targets, which were identified in advance based on accurate intelligence and bombed with successive waves of missiles and drones, in an operation he called 'complex and carefully coordinated.' Vahidi also directly accused the US for the attack, asserting that, 'The Zionist entity would not have been able to carry out these attacks without direct American support.' The US President's statements following the Israeli strike confirm Washington's involvement in the operation, he said, explaining that America's forces participated in intercepting Iranian missiles and provided direct assistance to the Israeli army. Vahidi also revealed that some Israeli attacks on Iran were launched from Iraqi airspace and logistically funded by the US, which he called a blatant violation of regional sovereignty and direct participation in the aggression against his country. Edited translation from Al-Masry Al-Youm
Yahoo
13-06-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Iran calls Israeli strikes a 'declaration of war,' swiftly replaces killed military leaders
Iran's foreign minister is calling Israel's strikes on its nuclear facilities and military leaders a "declaration of war" on Friday, as Tehran quickly replaced top commanders who were killed in the attacks, according to multiple media reports. The comments from Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi come as his department also released a statement claiming Israel's "aggression against Iran could not have been carried out without the coordination and approval of the United States." "Consequently, the U.S. government, as the primary patron of this regime, will also bear responsibility for the dangerous repercussions of the Zionist regime's reckless actions," the Iranian Foreign Ministry said in a statement Friday. The Commander-in-Chief of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) Hossein Salami and the country's chief of staff of the armed forces, Gen. Mohammad Bagheri, were killed by Israel's strikes. As of Friday morning, Ahmad Vahidi was appointed to temporarily replace Salami, while Habibollah Sayyari will fill in for Bagheri, the Jerusalem Post reported, citing Iranian media. Live Updates: Israel Launches 'Operation Rising Lion' On Iran Vahidi previously held the roles of Iran's defense minister and interior minister and once led the IRGC's elite Quds Force (QF) from 1988 to 1998, the Jerusalem Post added. It noted that during his time with the IRGC-QF, Vahidi was linked to the 1994 bombing of a Jewish community center in Buenos Aires, Argentina, which left 85 dead. Read On The Fox News App Sayyari is a former marine who led Iran's navy from 2007 to 2017. Israel Hits The 'Heart' Of Iran's Nuclear Program In Natanz Facility Strike Iran's Foreign Ministry said Friday that Israel's strikes "constitute a violation of Article 2(4) of the U.N. Charter and a blatant act of aggression against the Islamic Republic of Iran. "In accordance with Article 51 of the U.N. Charter, Iran reserves the legitimate and legal right to respond to this aggression. The Armed Forces of the Islamic Republic of Iran will not hesitate to defend Iran's sovereignty with full strength and in the manner they deem appropriate," it continued. "As a founding member of the United Nations -- an organization whose very purpose is to prevent aggression, breaches of peace, and threats to peace -- the Islamic Republic of Iran underscores the Security Council's obligation to take immediate action against this violation of international peace and security, stemming from the Zionist regime's blatant aggression. We call upon the President and members of the Council to act without delay in this regard," the foreign ministry added. "The grave and far-reaching consequences of the Zionist regime's aggression against our beloved homeland, Iran, will rest entirely upon this regime and its supporters," it also article source: Iran calls Israeli strikes a 'declaration of war,' swiftly replaces killed military leaders
