UN nixes reports of blast at Iran nuclear facility

World January 29, 2013

UN nixes reports of blast at Iran nuclear facility

VIENNA (AP) — The U.N. nuclear agency is dismissing reports of a major explosion at Iran's fortified underground nuclear facility.

International Atomic Energy Agency spokeswoman Gill Tudor told The Associated Press on Tuesday that Iran's denial of "an incident" at the Fordo uranium enrichment plant is "consistent with our observations."

Some news organizations have cited Israeli intelligence reports of a blast at Fordo. A diplomat familiar with the issue told AP that the IAEA's information came directly from IAEA inspectors at Fordo. He demanded anonymity because he was not authorized to comment.

Iran is enriching uranium at Fordo to a level that is just a technical step away from nuclear warhead material. Tehran says it is enriching only for reactor fuel and for scientific purposes and denies accusations it wants nuclear arms.

Subjects
Locations
- Iran,
- Middle East
Organisations
- International Atomic Energy Agency,
- United Nations

Related Headlines

Diplomat confirms Iran nuclear upgrade
Adding weight to its announcement of a nuclear upgrade, Tehran has shown high-level U.N. officials high-tech equipment positioned at its main uranium enrichment site meant to ...
AP Interview: UN nuke chief concerned about Iran
The U.N's top nuclear official expressed concern Tuesday that Iran may be secretly continuing work on nuclear weapons while his agency is tied up in protracted negotiations ...
UN fails in attempt to restart Iran nuke probe
U.N experts returned from Tehran on Friday without sealing a long-sought deal that would restart a probe of suspicions that Iran worked on atomic arms, adding to doubts that ...
UN nuke inspectors renew efforts to engage Iran
Envoys from the U.N. nuclear watchdog agency opened talks with Iranian officials on Thursday, seeking ways to restart negotiations with world powers and gain access to a site ...