TEHRAN, Iran (AP) – Iran on Saturday named a suspect in the attack on the Natanz nuclear facility that damaged the centrifuges there, saying it had fled the country before the sabotage occurred.
While the extent of the damage caused by the April 11 sabotage is still unclear, it occurs when Iran tries to negotiate with world powers to allow the US to re-enter its nuclear deal with the powers that be. and lift the economic sanctions they face.
Already, Iran has begun enriching uranium to 60% purity in response, three times greater than ever, albeit in small quantities. Iran’s sabotage and response has also caused even more tension throughout the Middle East, where there is still a shadow war between Tehran and Israel, the main suspect in the sabotage.
State television named the suspect as Reza Karimi, 43. He showed a passport-style photograph of a man he identified as Karimi, who was said to have been born in the nearby city of Kashan, Iran.
The report did not explain how Karimi would have had access to one of the safest facilities in the Islamic Republic.
The report also issued what appeared to be a “red warning” from Interpol calling for his arrest. The arrest warrant was not immediately accessible to Interpol’s public database. Interpol, based in Lyon, France, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The television report said “the necessary actions are being taken” to return Karimi to Iran through legal channels, without detailing it. Interpol’s alleged “red warning” lists its travel history as Spain, the United Arab Emirates, Kenya, Ethiopia, Qatar, Turkey, Uganda, Romania and another country illegible to the broadcast.
The report also showed centrifuges in a lobby, as well as what appeared to be a caution tape at Natanz’s facility.
In Vienna, negotiations continued on Saturday on the deal. The 2015 agreement, from which former President Donald Trump unilaterally withdrew the United States in 2018, prevented Iran from storing enough enriched uranium to be able to pursue a nuclear weapon if it chose to do so in exchange for lifting sanctions. economic.
Iran insists its nuclear program is peaceful, although the West and the IAEA say Tehran had a military nuclear program in place until the end of 2003. An annual U.S. intelligence report released on Tuesday maintained the American assessment that Iran has not tried to build a nuclear bomb for some time.
Earlier, Iran had said it could use up to 60% enriched uranium for nuclear-powered ships. However, the Islamic Republic does not currently have these vessels in its navy.
The Natanz attack was initially described only as a power outage, but later Iranian officials began calling it an attack.
An Iranian official referred to “several thousand centrifuges damaged and destroyed” in a state television interview. However, no other official has offered this figure and no images of the sequels have been posted.
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Associated Press writer Jon Gambrell in Dubai, UAE, contributed to this report.