Iran says Natanz nuclear site hit by terrorism
An incident at Iran’s Natanz nuclear facility yesterday was caused by an act of “nuclear terrorism”, the country’s nuclear chief Ali Akbar Salehi said, according to state TV, adding that Tehran reserves the right to take action against the perpetrators.
Israel’s Kan public radio cited intelligence sources, whose nationality it did not disclose, as saying that Israel’s Mossad spy agency had carried out a cyber attack at the site.
Earlier on Sunday, the spokesman for Iran’s Atomic Energy Organisation (AEOI) had said that a problem with the electrical distribution grid of the Natanz site had caused an incident, Iranian media reported.
The spokesman, Behrouz Kamalvandi, said the incident caused no casualties or contamination. Iranian media later reported that Kamalvandi had an accident while visiting the Natanz site, “suffering a broken head and leg”. The reports did not elaborate on the cause of the accident.
The facility, located in the desert in the central province of Isfahan, is the centrepiece of Iran’s uranium enrichment programme and is monitored by inspectors of the International Atomic Energy Agency, the U.N. nuclear watchdog.
“While condemning this despicable move, Iran emphasizes the need for the international community and the International Atomic Energy Agency to deal with this nuclear terrorism and reserves the right to take action against the perpetrators,” Salehi said. He did not elaborate.
Israel, which has accused Iran of seeking to build nuclear weapons that could be used against it, made no official comment on the incident. It took place a day after Tehran, which has denied it seeks atomic arms, started new advanced enrichment centrifuges at Natanz.
Asked about what had occurred, an IAEA spokesman said by email, “We are aware of the media reports. We have no comment at this stage.”
Kan Radio, citing the intelligence sources, said the damage at Natanz was more extensive than had been reported in Iran.
At a ceremony on Sunday with Israeli military and intelligence chiefs marking the 73rd anniversary next week of Israel’s founding, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu made no direct reference to Natanz.
But he said: “The fight against Iran’s nuclearisation … is a massive task.”
Tehran says its nuclear programme is purely for peaceful purposes.