More Stories
Tehran would be open to a nuclear deal in which it transfers its stockpile of highly enriched uranium abroad, Iran's ambassador to the United Nations said in an interview with Al-Monitor.
The dovish comments were the most expansive official expression of Iran's nuclear stance since the end of a twelve-day war which saw the Islamic Republic's nuclear sites attacked by Israel and the United States.
However, the whereabouts of Iran's near-bomb-grade uranium stockpiles remains unknown.
"We would be prepared to transfer our stockpiles of 60% and 20% enriched uranium to another country and have them transferred out of Iranian territory in return for receiving yellowcake," Ambassador Amir Saeid Iravani told Al-Monitor in a written interview.
Before the conflict, Iranian officials had loudly rejected the idea of such a transfer.
Around 400 kilograms—more than 900 pounds—of uranium enriched to 60% purity is unaccounted for. A former top UN nuclear official told Iran International that the risk of Iran's acquisition of a nuclear weapon remains until the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) confirms its location.
“One should not relax because this material as such is enough for 10 nuclear weapons if it is enriched further to 90%,” former Deputy Director General of the IAEA Olli Heinonen told Eye for Iran.
Regional consortium
In his interview with Al-Monitor, Iravani added Tehran is open to a regional nuclear consortium broached in US-Iran talks but does not see the plan as a substitute for a domestic nuclear program.
Iran, the envoy said, is willing to “collaborate with all countries in our region that operate nuclear reactors — whether on issues of reactor safety or the supply of reactor fuel,” if such a move is a “complementary initiative” and not a substitute for Iran’s domestic nuclear program.
The United States, according to domestic media reports, proposed to Iran in talks preceding the war the creation of a nuclear consortium potentially including Saudi Arabia, Oman, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar and the United States.
The arrangement would aim to supply Iran with enriched uranium for civilian use in exchange for partial sanctions relief on Iran’s oil exports, central bank, and the shipping sector.
Address unknown
The location of the proposed consortium was not determined in the talks as Tehran insisted enrichment must occur on its own soil.
Axios and The New York Times reported earlier this week that US negotiator Steve Witkoff has proposed creating a regional consortium to break the deadlock in stalled nuclear talks.
Iran's foreign ministry early this month rejected giving up domestic enrichment, but Iravani appeared to give the consortium idea its biggest official endorsement yet.
“A consortium could very well be one of the forms such cooperation might take,” Al-Monitor quoted Iravani as saying.
Asked if Iran would limit enrichment to the auspices of the consortium operating within Iran, Iravani told the outlet: “In principle, we have no objection to that; however, we should consider it based on the details of any potential proposals we receive.”
Iravani told the outlet that the Iranian parliament's recent move to bar cooperation with the International Atomic Energy Agency "does not signify Iran’s withdrawal from the NPT," or non-proliferation treaty.
A nuclear deal with the United States, Iravani added, must respect “Iran’s rights as a responsible (NPT) member”.
"We would be prepared to transfer our stockpiles of 60% and 20% enriched uranium to another country and have them transferred out of Iranian territory in return for receiving yellowcake," Iran's envoy to the United Nations Amir Saeid Iravani told Al-Monitor.
Images captured by satellite firm Maxar appear to show excavation and earthmoving equipment at work on Friday at the Fordow nuclear site bombed by the United States, CNN reported.
Throughout Israel's 12-day war on Iran, it launched strikes on key state organs tasked with domestic surveillance, protest suppression, detention and propaganda, targeting what it called “repression infrastructure.”
The attacks focused on intelligence and security agencies, judicial and detention systems, and officials overseeing internal control.
Israel framed the strikes as a show of solidarity with Iranian protesters and an effort to disrupt the Islamic Republic’s repressive capacity.
"The Israeli Defense Force is now attacking with unprecedented force regime targets and government repression bodies in the heart of Tehran," the Israeli military said on Monday.
The targeted institutions included the following:
Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Intelligence Organization (SAS)
Established in 2009, SAS operates alongside the Ministry of Intelligence (MOIS) and reports directly to Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei.
Known for ideological rigidity, it suppresses dissent, especially through social media monitoring. It controls Evin Prison’s Ward 2A and other black sites nationwide.
Israel struck the SAS headquarters in Tehran on June 15, reportedly killing:
- Brigadier General Mohammad Kazemi (SAS chief)
- Hassan Movahed (or Mohaqeq) (deputy)
- General Mohsen Bagheri (senior officer)
A separate strike on June 13 heavily damaged the Internal Security Bureau building in Tehran. Casualties remain undisclosed.
Sarallah Headquarters
This key IRGC base oversees security across Tehran and coordinates Basij deployments during unrest.
Israel struck Sarallah HQ on June 23, a day before a ceasefire.
Social media reports indicate the facility was destroyed.
Multiple officers and personnel are believed killed, but names have been withheld.
Tehran Basij Headquarters
On June 13, a central Tehran Basij building sustained heavy damage from an Israeli strike.
Israel also hit Basij bases in the cities of Zarandiyeh, Behbahan and Karaj.
Casualties remain undisclosed.
Ministry of Intelligence (MOIS)
Known as VAJA, the ministry leads Iran’s domestic and foreign intelligence operations, including political repression. It controls Evin’s Wards 209 and 240.
Israel targeted the MOIS building in Tehran on June 15.
Casualties are likely but remain unnamed.
Internal Security Bureau of Law Enforcement Forces
This unit of Iran’s national police force (FARAJA) handles surveillance, riot control, and arrests.
Its Tehran HQ was struck on June 22 and 23.
Brigadier General Alireza Lotfi, acting head of the bureau, was killed in the June 22 attack.
The Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting (IRIB)
Israel labeled IRIB as a key “propaganda tool” of the Islamic Republic.
Its headquarters in Tehran was bombed on June 16, about an hour after civilian evacuation alerts.
Confirmed dead:
- Nima Rajabpour (staff)
- Masoumeh Azimi (staff)
- One civilian bystander
Evin Prison in Tehran
Evin holds political detainees, dual nationals, those deemed as threats to national security, as well as others serving time for financial crimes.
The prison was struck on June 23, causing extensive damage to the main gate, administration offices, library, infirmary and Wards 4, 6 and the Women’s Ward.
Confirmed dead in the strike so far were:
- Ruhollah Tavasoli and Vahid Heydarpour (prison officials)
- Ali Ghanatkar (judicial official)
- Several conscript soldiers
- Two physicians, a social worker, her 5-year-old child, a visiting family member, and a bystander.
All inmates were later transferred to other facilities.
Intelligence agents in the central Iranian city of Isfahan have used threats and violence to coerce some citizens into giving false testimony against members of the Baha’i religious minority and filing judicial cases against them, sources told Iran International.
The forced false testimonies represent an escalation in efforts to target Iran’s largest religious minority, which has faced systematic persecution for decades.
This development comes amid a wider crackdown following the recent Iran-Israel conflict, as authorities intensify repression of minorities and dissidents under heightened security concerns.
