Iran Nuclear Chief Says 'Various Scenarios' Examined Regarding Natanz 'Incident'

Damage at one side of a building is shown in this photo released by Iran after a fire or explosion at Natanz Nuclear Facility, Jully 2, 2020.

Chief of Iran’s atomic Energy Organization has said Sunday at parliament that “various scenarios” are being considered regarding the “Natanz incident” and “the definitive results” will soon be announced.

Ali Akbar Salehi participated in a meeting of parliament’s national security commission where he also repeated a previous announcement that the country’s security council does not want to announce the result of the investigations at this point, due to security reasons.

Salehi’s remarks were passed on to the local media by the spokesman of the parliamentary commission.

While Salehi today said various scenarios are being examined, on Friday, July 3 Iran had announced that the cause of the incident at its Natanz uranium enrichment plant early on Thursday was pinpointed but the government will announce it later.

A mysterious explosion or fire happened in one of the buildings at the sprawling nuclear facility, which destroyed a large part of a building. Speculations range from internal sabotage to a cyberattack or cruise missile strike by Israel.

Iran has not directly accused any country but in two notes published in local media, both the United States and Israel are warned if there are any signs they have “crossed red lines”, Iran will “fundamentally” reconsider its policies.

Israel’s defense minister on Sunday told the army radio that one cannot ascribe everything that happens in Iran to Israel. The foreign minister in turn told Maariv Israel’s long-term policy is to prevent Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons.

The Natanz incident is not the only mysterious destructive event in recent weeks in Iran. Dozens of fires and explosions have taken place in economic and infrastructure facilities as well as in forests and parks.