AFP – Iran has informed the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) it has stopped production at one of its nuclear facilities attacked last June and transferred work to another site, the watchdog said on Monday.
The move responded to a “security concern” following the attack, with the new site “better protected”, a European diplomat told AFP.
The TESA complex in Karaj, which is near the capital Tehran, hosted a workshop to build components for centrifuges, machines used to enrich uranium.
Iran said cameras at the site were damaged on June 23, 2021 during what it called an Israeli “sabotage” operation.
In the aftermath, the Vienna-based IAEA said it did not receive permission to gain access and replace the surveillance equipment damaged in the attack.
The two parties finally struck an agreement in December and new cameras were installed.
However, IAEA Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi said “Iran had informed the Agency on January 19 that it intended to produce centrifuge rotor tubes and bellows at a new location in Esfahan”, according to the UN watchdog.
It said “the Agency could adjust its surveillance and monitoring measures accordingly”.
