International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Director General Rafael Grossi on Thursday said the nuclear watchdog does not have information showing Iran is actively trying to build nuclear weapons. “We did not find in Iran elements to indicate that there is an active, systematic plan to build a nuclear weapon,” Grossi told Al Jazeera in an interview.
Grossi has repeated this in several interviews in recent days as Israel repeatedly targeted nuclear facilities in Iran, alarming the international community of devastating consequences.
“We have not seen elements to allow us, as inspectors, to affirm that there was a nuclear weapon that was being manufactured or produced somewhere in Iran.”
Grossi made the comments a week after the agency’s Board of Governors declared Iran noncompliant with its commitment to international nuclear safeguards. It based this assessment on what it called Iran’s “many failures” to provide “full and timely cooperation regarding undeclared nuclear material and activities”.
It singled out Iran’s failure to credibly explain uranium traces detected at its undeclared sites.
Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesman has accused IAEA chief Rafael Grossi and his organisation of being complicit in the ongoing conflict, saying their “biased” reporting on Iran’s nuclear activities was used as a “pretext” for Israel to attack.
Meanwhile, the IAEA confirmed that the Khondab (formerly Arak) heavy water research reactor, which was hit by Israeli strikes, had no radiological effects as it was not operational and contained no nuclear material. The Arak Nuclear Complex, located in the Western part of the country, around 280 kilometres from the capital, Tehran.
“IAEA has information that the Khondab (former Arak) heavy water research reactor, under construction, was hit. It was not operational and contained no nuclear material, so no radiological effects,” said the watchdog, adding, “At present, IAEA has no information indicating the Khondab heavy water plant was hit.”
This comes after Israel has attacked Iran’s Arak heavy water reactor, which Israel claimed is “a key component in plutonium production.”
“The strike targeted the component intended for plutonium production, in order to prevent the reactor from being restored and used for nuclear weapons development,” the Israeli military claimed.
Iranian media reported air defences were activated in the area of the Khondab nuclear facility, and two projectiles hit an area close to it.
Iranian state TV reported the attack on the Arak site, stating there was “no radiation danger whatsoever,” while a reporter, speaking live from nearby Khondab, said the facility had been evacuated and no damage had occurred in the surrounding civilian areas.
The IAEA is closely monitoring the situation in Iran, with its Incident and Emergency Centre operating 24/7 from the outset to ascertain the status of Iran’s nuclear facilities and radiation levels at relevant sites through constant communication with Iranian authorities.
The Incident and Emergency Centre is the global focal point for international emergency preparedness, communication and response to nuclear and radiological incidents and emergencies.
As of June 16, IAEA inspectors remained present in Iran. IAEA Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi said on June 16 that inspections “will continue as soon as safety conditions allow.”
Grossi also announced that the IAEA’s Incident and Emergency Centre is monitoring Iran and is ready to respond in the event of a nuclear or radiological emergency.
“I stand ready to travel immediately and engage with all relevant parties to help ensure the protection of nuclear facilities and the continued peaceful use of nuclear technology in accordance with the Agency mandate, including by deploying Agency nuclear security and safety experts, in addition to our safeguards inspectors in Iran, wherever necessary,” he said.
Meanwhile, many believe that the IAEA’s statement clarifying that the Arak strike did not involve an active nuclear site is crucial, as it contradicts Israel’s claim of Iran having nuclear potential.
As the two countries trade fire for a seventh consecutive day, a Washington, DC-based Iranian human rights group reported that at least 639 people, including 263 civilians, have been killed and more than 1,300 wounded in Iran due to air strikes, while Iran has fired about 400 missiles and hundreds of drones at Israel, killing at least 24 people and injuring hundreds.
