IAEA chief says no further sign of damage at Iran’s nuclear sites
Rafael Grossi is providing an update to the International Atomic Energy Agency’s board of governors in Vienna on the situation at Iran’s nuclear facilities following Israel’s ongoing attacks.
He said there was no sign of further damage at the Natanz or Fordow enrichment sites.
“The agency is and will remain present in Iran. Safeguards inspections in Iran will continue as soon as safety conditions allow, as is required under Iran’s NPT safeguards obligations,” he said in the statement.
Grossi has previously said Israeli attacks have destroyed the above-ground pilot enrichment plant at Natanz and that Iran had reported attacks on sites in Fordow and Isfahan.
He said the electricity infrastructure at Natanz was also destroyed, and the loss of power to a cascade hall may have damaged centrifuges there. But he said the level of radioactivity outside Natanz remained unchanged and normal.
Israeli attacks on Iran nuclear sites ‘a massive compromise’ of safety
Israel attacked Iran’s Natanz nuclear facility on Friday, with above-ground buildings destroyed. But there’s no indication of any destruction underground, where the main cascade hall is located.
Offsite radiation levels appear to be normal, according to the International Atomic Energy Agency. But the IAEA is saying underneath the halls and the chambers of the facility, it expects there is some kind of radiological or chemical contamination in the form of vapours or gases – the kind of stuff you don’t want to breathe in.
As IAEA chief Rafael Grossi said, if you have the right kind of safety measures, a breathing apparatus, it is manageable.
There is also an assessment of what’s been going on at Isfahan, which, like Natanz, was also attacked by Israel on Friday; four buildings were damaged on the surface level. But as with Natanz, no increase in radiation levels.
The Fordow nuclear site apparently has not been attacked yet. Grossi was saying these shouldn’t be attacked at all. One of the main core responsibilities of the IAEA is to safeguard nuclear security, and if you have facilities with bombs falling on them, that is a massive compromise, obviously.
