IAEA wants to return to Iranian nuclear facilities as soon as possible to assess the damage from Israeli attacks. That is what the head of the international atomic agency, Rafael Grossi, just told reporters during a visit to Austria.
Grossi was also asked about the varying stories about how extensive the damage to those nuclear sites actually is. A reporter asked him if it is true that the Iranian nuclear program has only been delayed by a few months. Grossi responded evasively that he wants a solution that will stand the “test of time.”
Trump, Hegseth, and Rubio pounced on a question from a journalist about the leaked report that states that the damage to Iranian targets was limited.
The trio repeated: the targets were “completely destroyed,” the report was “inconclusive,” and CNN and The New York Times were “politically biased” in their reporting about it. None of these claims were substantiated with evidence.
The report that the American media wrote about was, according to him, “inconclusive.” Hegseth added that media used the report as a stick to beat with.
The American president added that the Iranian nuclear program has been delayed by decades. He repeatedly stated that the American attacks on Iranian targets resulted in “total devastation.”
Just now, there was another striking moment. When Trump was asked if he would attack Iran again if that country starts rebuilding the nuclear program, the president answered: “Certainly.”
NATO chief Mark Rutte, who is also at the press moment, intervenes and diverts attention from the (unfounded) accusations of Trump, Hegseth, and Rubio towards the American media. “The most important thing is that the US has removed the nuclear threat from Iran,” said Rutte.
Rubio also joins the conversation. He tears apart the people who leaked the report. Trump and Hegseth lash out at CNN and The New York Times.
Defense Minister Pete Hegseth also reacts to the report now. He says that reporting about the leaked report is politically motivated, without providing any evidence for that.
Trump is now again asked about the leaked defense report about the limited damage at the Iranian facilities. Again, he speaks of devastation. “If you look at the satellite images, you see that everything is burned black.”
Donald Trump is now answering a number of questions about Iran during a press moment at the NATO summit in The Hague. The American president reiterated that the American attacks on Iran on Monday were successful.
Pope Leo XIV also calls on Israel and Iran to respect the ceasefire. He urges both countries to seek solutions through dialogue, instead of violence.
“May the logic of oppression and revenge be rejected,” the Pope said just now at the end of his weekly address in St. Peter’s Square. “May the path of dialogue, diplomacy, and peace be chosen with conviction.”
The Israeli army believes it is too early to determine the extent of the damage that numerous air strikes have inflicted on nuclear installations in Iran. According to the army, Israel has dealt “a significant blow” to the country’s nuclear program.
While Iran is on the verge of suspending cooperation with the IAEA, Marco Rubio reiterates that Iran “is further away from a nuclear weapon” since the United States bombed nuclear targets. The American Secretary of State, who is currently in The Hague for the NATO summit, tells news site POLITICO that “significant damage” has been inflicted in the bombings.
Rubio dismisses reporting about the leaked report that states that the damage to the Iranian locations is not as significant as the American government claims as “nonsense.” “I hate having to respond to these kinds of stories, because the first version of the story (published by CNN and The New York Times, ed.) is not correct, and the one who publishes it has an agenda.”
According to news network Iran International, the proposal also states that IAEA inspections will be suspended. In the future, the Iranian National Security Council would have to grant permission before inspectors are allowed access.
The decision is sensitive. The IAEA monitors whether the Iranian nuclear program complies with international agreements. The moment Iran suspends cooperation with the atomic agency, this can be seen in the West as a signal that Iran is going to violate those agreements.
That can become problematic if there are signals that Iran is going to develop a nuclear weapon. That was the reason for Israel to attack Iran two weeks ago.
The decision now only needs approval from the Iranian National Security Council, reports Reuters.
The Iranian parliament has just approved a law that suspends cooperation with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). That suspension has been in the air for some time, but now seems to be officially going to happen.
China, Brazil, India, Russia, and South Africa condemn the recent attacks on Iran in a joint statement, without mentioning the name of Israel or the United States. The countries do not address the ceasefire in the statement.
The countries express their concerns about the attacks on “peaceful” nuclear facilities in Iran. The five are united in the so-called BRICS bloc. These are countries with rapidly growing economies. Iran has also been a member of the collective since last year.
In Tehran, a large national funeral ceremony will be held on Saturday for scientists and senior military officials who died in Israeli bombings. State media call them martyrs who were killed by the aggression of the “Zionist regime,” which refers to Israel.
It is not known when the deceased top figures will be or have been buried. The commander of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard, Hossein Salami, was reportedly buried on Thursday.
Israel will react “forcefully” if Iran violates the ceasefire. That is what Israeli UN Ambassador Danny Danon said on Tuesday at a meeting of the Security Council in New York.
The American embassy in Jerusalem is open again today. The reason for this is the ceasefire between Israel and Iran, the embassy announces on its website.
However, the embassy warns its employees not to travel outside the major cities of Tel Aviv, Jerusalem, and Be’er Sheva until further notice.
Iranian authorities have executed three men today, after they were convicted of cooperating with the Israeli intelligence agency Mossad, reports news agency Mizan. They also smuggled equipment that was later used in an assassination attempt, according to Iran.
On Monday, a man was also executed for espionage for Israel. He was arrested at the end of 2023 and, according to the Iranian news agency Tasnim, was “the head of a cyber team that had ties to the Mossad.”
Steve Witkoff, Trump’s special envoy for, among other things, the wars in the Middle East, calls the leak “treasonous.” “It’s outrageous, it’s treasonous and it needs to be investigated,” he reacted to FOX News. “Whoever is responsible here will be held accountable.”
He added that he has read all the reports about the attacks on Iran, and that there is “no doubt” that all nuclear locations have been “destroyed.”
CNN and The New York Times came with remarkable news last night. The American media wrote, based on a leaked report, that the impact of the American bombings on nuclear targets in Iran has been limited. According to the report, the nuclear program of Iran has probably only been delayed by a few months.
Remarkable was Trump’s reaction to the violation of the ceasefire. Yesterday, he fulminated in front of government plane Air Force One: “What the fuck are Iran and Israel doing?”