The IAEA director reiterated that nuclear facilities must never be attacked, regardless of the context or circumstances.

On Friday, Rafael Grossi, director of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), issued a statement from Vienna addressing Israeli airstrikes on Iranian nuclear facilities.

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“We are currently in contact with the Iranian nuclear safety authorities to ascertain the status of relevant nuclear facilities and to assess any wider impacts on nuclear safety and security,” he said.

“At present, the competent Iranian authorities have confirmed that the Natanz enrichment site has been impacted and that there are no elevated radiation levels. They have also reported that at present, the Esfahan and Fordow sites have not been impacted,” Grossi added.

Expressing concern over the developments, the IAEA chief reiterated that nuclear facilities must never be attacked, regardless of the context or circumstances, as such actions could have serious consequences for international peace and security.

“In this regard, the IAEA recalls the numerous General Conference resolutions on the topic of military attacks against nuclear facilities, in particular, GC(XXIX)/RES/444 and GC(XXXIV)/RES/533, which state, among other things, that ‘any armed attack on and threat against nuclear facilities devoted to peaceful purposes constitutes a violation of the principles of the United Nations Charter, international law and the Statute of the Agency,'” Grossi said.

“Furthermore, the IAEA has consistently underlined that ‘armed attacks on nuclear facilities could result in radioactive releases with serious consequences within and beyond the boundaries of the state which has been attacked,'” he added, urging all parties to exercise maximum restraint to avoid further escalation.

Hours earlier, the IAEA had confirmed that Israeli strikes had hit Natanz, Iran’s primary uranium enrichment plant, which houses thousands of gas centrifuges of varying models and speeds. It also stated that the Israeli attacks had not affected the Fordow fuel enrichment plant or the Esfahan nuclear facility.

The Iranian government today called for an urgent and immediate meeting of the U.N. Security Council in New York to address the situation resulting from the Israeli strikes on its nuclear facilities.

With Russia’s support, Iran has also requested that the IAEA Board of Governors hold an emergency meeting on Monday, June 16.

teleSUR/ JF

Sources: EFE – IAEA

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