According to a confidential International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) report, Iran plans to install more than 6,000 additional centrifuges at its Natanz and Fordow uranium enrichment plants. The decision is a response to a recent censure of Iran by the IAEA board. The centrifuges will be installed in 32 cascades of more than 160 machines each and will include a large cascade of 1,152 advanced IR-6 centrifuges in the Pilot Fuel Enrichment Plant at Natanz.
News Briefs
November 28, 2024
Israel and Hezbollah agreed to a two-month ceasefire as part of a deal brokered by France and the United States. The agreement requires Hezbollah militants and Israeli troops to withdraw from southern Lebanon, to be replaced by Lebanese troops and U.N. peacekeepers.
-- Associated Press
November 21, 2024
According to the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI), the Iranian Revolutionary National Guard (IRGC) and Iranian government are using civilian companies for missile and drone program production, including Kaveh Mobadel Industrial Co. (also known as Kaveh Machinery Co. or KMC), Sanaye Garma Gostar (also known as SGG or Garma Gostar Industries), and Sana Bargh Tavan Co. (also known as SBT Electric). For example, SGG has reportedly manufactured electronics boards for missiles and drones. The companies are subject to inspection by the Iranian Ministry of Defense and hold contracts with the IRGC and the governmnt.
-- Fox News
November 21, 2024
The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Board of Governors voted 19-3 to censure Iran for failing to cooperate with the Agency’s monitoring and inspection requirements. Russia, China, and Burkina Faso were the dissenting votes. Following the vote, the Iranian government announced plans to begin operating additional centrifuges for uranium enrichment.
-- New York Times
November 20, 2024
The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) reported that Iran has continued to expand its uranium enrichment activities, increasing its stockpile of uranium enriched to 60 percent by more than 17 kg, to a total of 182.3 kg. According to the report, during a recent visit to Iran by IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi, Iran offered to cap its stockpile of uranium enriched to 60 percent, but that offer is reportedly conditional on an IAEA board censure resolution failing to pass.
-- Reuters
November 15, 2024
Israel’s attack on Iran on October 26 destroyed an active Iranian nuclear weapons research facility in the Parchin military complex, according to U.S. and Israeli officials. The facility, known as Taleghan 2, contained equipment for designing the shaped plastic explosives used to detonate a nuclear weapon and is part of a recent effort by the Iranian government to conduct research that could be used to develop nuclear weapons. The facility was part of the Amad Plan, a pre-2004 Iranian program to develop nuclear weapons.
-- Axios
November 5, 2024
Russia launched two Iranian satellites into orbit aboard a Soyuz rocket: the Kowsar (a high-resolution imaging satellite) and Hodhod (a small communications satellite). The Iranian satellites were among 53 small satellites launched by the rocket, according to Russia’s space agency, Roscosmos.
-- Reuters
October 26, 2024
Israel conducted an attack against Iran dealing substantial damage to its ballistic missile production capabilities. The operation targeted 12 planetary mixers, specialized equipment used in the production of solid propellant that Iran cannot replace on its own. The attack also included strikes on four S-300 air defense installations, a drone production factory, and a symbolic strike on a facility at Parchin associated with Iran's nuclear research and development.
-- Axios
October 25, 2024
A U.S. federal jury convicted Brian Assi (Brahim Assi) of conspiring to export U.S.-origin blasthole drills to Iran in violation of U.S. sanctions. Assi secretly coordinated the illicit export of the drills with Iran-based Sakht Abzar Pars Co. (SAP-Iran) while working as a salesman for the drills’ manufacturer, a multinational company with a U.S.-based subsidiary. He arranged for an Iraq-based distributor to purchase the drills and had them shipped from the United States to Turkey. Assi falsely claimed that the equipment was intended for Iraq, but actually intended to reexport them from Turkey to Iran. The drills are used for mining.
-- U.S. Department of Justice
October 22, 2024
The U.S. Second Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that Halkbank, a Turkish state-owned financial institution, can face criminal prosecution for allegedly having helped Iran circumvent U.S. sanctions by laundering billions of dollars of frozen Iranian oil revenue. The ruling dismissed Halkbank’s argument that it was protected by sovereign immunity, a doctrine that shields foreign governments from prosecution in U.S. courts, noting the commercial rather than governmental nature of the bank's activities.
-- The Wall Street Journal