
Iran threatens to ramp up enrichment of nuke-grade uranium AGAIN – just 24 days after Trump bombed ‘Mount Doom' facility
Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)
IRAN has again threatened to ramp up enrichment of its near-weapons-grade uranium stockpile just days after being bombed by the US.
It comes after Israel said some of Iran's nuclear fuel survived US bombings during the 12-Day War last month.
10
A satellite view shows an overview of Fordow underground complex after the US bombings on June 21
Credit: Reuters
10
This satellite image provided by Maxar Technologies shows a close view of the Isfahan nuclear technology in Iran after US strikes
Credit: AP
10
This picture shows a general view of the Isfahan nuclear power plant in 2005
Credit: AFP
10
Tehran admitted that Operation Midnight Hammer - which saw American B-2 Spirit bombers drop more than a dozen GBU-57 Massive Ordnance Penetrator bunker buster bombs - did cause "excessive and serious" damage.
But it said the bombings will not deter the regime from enriching uranium, which they claim is for peaceful civilian use.
The uranium in question is enriched to 60 per cent - way above levels for civilian use but slightly below weapons-grade.
That material, if further refined to 90 per cent, would theoretically be sufficient to produce more than nine nuclear bombs.
Alaeddin Boroujerdi, a member of the Iranian Parliament's National Security and Foreign Policy Commission told Mehr News Agency: "We will never give up our legitimate right to enrich uranium.
"Enrichment is a sovereign right that we will continue to pursue based on our national needs.
"Bombing cannot erase this knowledge — it will only come back stronger."
It comes as the UK, France and Germany have agreed to restore tough UN sanctions on Iran by the end of August if there has been no concrete progress on a nuclear deal.
Ali Velayati, an adviser to supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, was quoted as saying by the state news agency IRNA: "If the negotiations [with the US] must be conditioned on stopping enrichment, such negotiations will not take place."
Boroujerdi added: "We will in no way succumb to the West's demands for zero enrichment."
The UN's top nuclear watchdog International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) warned Iran could start enriching uranium again within just months.
Doubts remained whether Iran quietly removed 408.6 kgs of uranium from its most sensitive sites before the US strikes - potentially hiding nuclear material elsewhere in the country.
Trump rips critics & insists 'bombs went through like butter' at Iran sites
An Israeli official told The New York Times some of the uranium stockpile survived the US and Israeli bombings last month - and may be accessible to Iranian nuclear engineers.
The official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, did not express concern about the remaining stockpile and said any attempt to recover it would be detected by the Israeli intelligence.
They also said that Israel would have enough time to attack Iran's nuclear facilities again if the regime tries to recover it.
But it was not clear immediately if the strikes - which hit Iran's Fordow nuclear enrichment plant, Natanz and Isfahan nuclear facilities - were able to wipe out the entire stockpile of enriched uranium.
International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) chief Rafael Grossi admitted Iran could still have stockpiles of enriched uranium, saying: "We don't know where this material could be.
10
10
The moment a GBU-57 Massive Ordnance Penetrator (MOP) hit the earth in the test footage
"So some could have been destroyed as part of the attack, but some could have been moved. So there has to be at some point a clarification," he said in an interview with CBS.
"We need to be in a position to ascertain, to confirm what is there, and where it is and what happened," Grossi said.
Satellite imagery showed trucks moving out of Fordow in the days leading up to the attack - leading to speculations that Iran moved some of its underground uranium stockpile.
US and Israel, as well as independent experts, agree that all of Iran's working centrifuges at Natanz and Fordo — some 18,000 - were either destroyed or damaged beyond repair.
DOOM & BOOM
Satellite imagery appeared to show construction work at the Fordow Nuclear Enrichment facility in Qom, near Tehran.
Heavy earthmoving equipment can be seen working near the impact craters caused by US GBU-57 bunker-buster bombs.
Excavators and cranes can also be seen working, while more construction trucks are visible on roads leading to the impact points at the site.
A new access road between the site's northern tunnel entrance and one of the impact craters can be seen after Israel said its air force struck Fordow to "disrupt" access to the site.
David Albright, a US weapons expert, said in his assessment that Iran may be filling the craters and conducting engineering damage assessments and radiological sampling.
10
Construction activity post-bombing at Fordow as of June 27; annotations by The Sun
Credit: Maxar via Reuters
10
A satellite overview shows earthmoving at the Fordow Fuel Enrichment Facility on June 27; annotations by The Sun
Credit: Maxar via Reuters
The 12-Day War began on June 13 when Israel launched Operation Rising Lion - a sophisticated campaign of bombing which targeted Iran's military nuclear sites.
The Israelis also brilliantly orchestrated Operation Red Wedding - 30 top Iranian military chiefs killed in near-simultaneous blitz as Israel sought to root out the country's military strength entirely.
Iran retaliated by launching daily salvos of ballistic missiles across Israel, but failed to hit any strategic targets.
Less than a fortnight later, Trump joined the Israeli bombing campaign against Iran.
The US military's flagship B-2 Spirit stealth bombers dropped more than a dozen 30,000lb GBU-57 Massive Ordnance Penetrator (MOP).
The bunker-buster bombs were used to hit Iran's Fordow Nuclear Enrichment Plant.
Iran, which vowed to hit US military bases across the Middle East, sought its revenge by launching missiles at Al-Udeid Air Base - America's biggest military station in the region.
10
President Donald Trump speaks from the East Room of the White House in Washington after the strikes
10
President Donald Trump and his national security team meet in the Situation Room during the bombings
Credit: White House
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


Reuters
25 minutes ago
- Reuters
Trump EPA aims to repeal vehicle emission rules after revoking greenhouse gas endangerment finding
WASHINGTON, July 24 (Reuters) - The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency plans to repeal all greenhouse gas emission standards for light-duty, medium-duty, and heavy-duty vehicles and engines in the coming days after it removes the scientific finding that justified those rules, according to a summary of the proposal. In a draft of a summary of the forthcoming proposal, seen by Reuters, the agency is expected to say that the Clean Air Act does not authorize the EPA to impose emission standards to address global climate change concerns and will rescind the finding that GHG emissions from new motor vehicles and engines endanger public health or welfare. It is also expected to justify rescinding the endangerment finding by casting doubt on the scientific record used to make the finding. "We further propose, in the alternative, to rescind the Administrator's findings because the EPA unreasonably analyzed the scientific record and because developments cast significant doubt on the reliability of the findings," the summary says. The U.S. Supreme Court, in its landmark Massachusetts v. EPA case in 2007, said the EPA has authority under the Clean Air Act to regulate greenhouse gas emissions and required the agency to make a scientific finding on whether they endanger public health. In 2009, the EPA under former President Barack Obama issued a finding that emissions from new motor vehicles contribute to pollution and endanger public health and welfare. It was upheld in several legal challenges and underpinned subsequent greenhouse gas regulations. The summary also says that one of its rationales for repealing the vehicle standards is that the required technology to reduce emissions would risk greater harms to public health and welfare. Former President Joe Biden's administration said the standards would hike upfront vehicle prices but save consumers money in the long run after accounting for lower fuel costs. The agency is likely to announce the proposal in the coming days, according to a source familiar with the matter who asked not to be named. The EPA said it had sent its proposal to reconsider the endangerment finding to the White House for review on June 30. "The proposal will be published for public notice and comment once it has completed interagency review and been signed by the Administrator," the agency said. The agency did not comment on the tailpipe rules. The rescinding of all vehicle emission standards is the latest - and most extensive - attempt to put a quick end to EPA tailpipe rules that were forecast to cut greenhouse gas emissions by 49% by 2032 over 2026 levels. Some 29% of U.S. greenhouse gas emissions come from the transportation sector, according to EPA data. The EPA forecast that between 35% and 56% of all sales between 2030 and 2032 would be EVs to meet the requirements. The Trump administration has taken a multi-pronged approach to dismantling rules designed to improve vehicle efficiency, reduce fuel use and boost electric vehicles, including ending the $7,500 new EV tax credit and $4,000 used EV tax credit on Sept. 30 and has frozen billions of dollars in EV charging funding for states. Under legislation signed by President Donald Trump earlier this month, automakers face no fines for failures to meet fuel efficiency rules dating back to the 2022 model year. Last year, Chrysler-parent Stellantis paid $190.7 million in civil penalties for failing to meet U.S. fuel economy requirements for 2019 and 2020 after paying nearly $400 million for penalties from 2016 through 2019. GM previously paid $128.2 million in penalties for 2016 and 2017. In June, Trump signed three congressional resolutions barring California's electric vehicle sales mandates and diesel engine rules. Trump approved a resolution to bar California's landmark plan to end the sale of gasoline-only vehicles by 2035, which has been adopted by 11 other states and representing a third of the U.S. auto market. California has filed suit to overturn the repeal.


Reuters
25 minutes ago
- Reuters
Austria's RBI 'derecognizes' $1.41 billion legal claim from Rasperia for Q2
July 24 (Reuters) - Austria's Raiffeisen Bank International (RBI) ( opens new tab on Thursday said it "derecognizes" 1.2 billion euros ($1.41 billion) in expected proceeds from enforcing claims against Rasperia Trading Limited's Austrian assets for the second quarter of 2025. In June, a Russian court had rejected RBI's bid to lift an injunction banning the sale of its local subsidiary. The ban is tied to a lawsuit brought by Russian investment firm Rasperia after a collapsed deal in which RBI was ordered last year to pay 2 billion euros in damages. RBI's board "concluded that the strict criteria under International Financial Reporting Standards for recognition of the expected proceeds from enforcement of legal recourse against Rasperia are no longer met," the Vienna-based bank said. Raiffeisen plans to recoup much of the damages imposed in Russia through legal action in Austria aimed at recovering Rasperia assets there. The bank told Reuters that writing off 1.2 billion euros will impact the group's first-half 2025 results, including its Russian operations. However, excluding Russia, the bank said it expects no impact. RBI is set to release its semi-annual results by the end of July. The bank's dispute with Rasperia followed the failure of a deal that RBI hoped would have allowed it to unlock some of its frozen assets in Russia. RBI had sought to buy a stake in Vienna-based construction company Strabag ( opens new tab, but pulled out under pressure from Washington. "Despite the changed accounting treatment, the legal assessment remains unchanged, and RBI's Management Board maintains a high degree of confidence in its legal claim against Rasperia and the enforceability thereof against Rasperia's assets in Austria," RBI said. ($1 = 0.8494 euros)


Daily Record
25 minutes ago
- Daily Record
Former First Minister's in-laws in Gaza 'can't even find grass or leaves to eat'
Dundee councillor Nadia El-Nakla, the wife of Humza Yousaf, said it was 'traumatising' to watch her relatives go through a 'living nightmare'. The wife of former Scottish first minister Humza Yousaf has said the lives of her family in Gaza are 'hanging in the balance' as she accused Israel of starving two million people in the Strip. Nadia El-Nakla said her family could not even find grass, leaves or any animals to eat, amid an Israeli blockade on the amount of food and supplies going into the region. The Dundee councillor said it was 'traumatising' to watch her relatives go through a 'living nightmare'. She described the territory as 'hell on earth'. Asked on BBC Scotland's Drivetime programme if she thought she would ever get back to Gaza to see her family again, she said: 'I think Gaza is gone – I don't think Gaza will exist any more. 'The situation is just incredibly difficult, heartbreaking, traumatising for us to watch, and for them their life is now hanging in the balance.' She said her cousin Sally, a mother of four, has been moved to different tents 15 times after her house was destroyed. 'She has no food,' Ms El-Nakla said. 'She had a loaf of bread the other day that she was trying to save for her children. My other cousin told her, 'look, just eat grass, eat leaves, eat plants', and she said 'we can't even find them'. 'There's no cash either, so even if I sent her £1,000, she can't access that money, and there's no way for her to buy anything. So it's just a living nightmare – it's hell on earth.' She added: 'It's just, it's so devastating because her husband is going out every day, and they're so scared that he'll not come back because of the bombing, to try and find food, and he can't find any.' She said that even for those who can access money, the price of a kilo of sugar is about 200 dollars (£148), making it inaccessible for most. She urged world leaders to do more to force Israel to allow more aid into Gaza, amid warnings from aid agencies about mass starvation. Speaking about her cousin Sally, she said: 'She sent me a voicenote saying 'I hate the world – no-one is coming to help us', and I could hear her children in the background. 'That's what breaks my heart the most, is they know that no-one's coming to help them, and to have your child hungry, to be hungry yourself, how that feels to have hunger, and how you're supposed to look after your kids, and they're crying to you because they're hungry – like I say, it's a living nightmare.' She added: 'Now nothing exists. It's bare survival. 'They feel that they're all going to die and we're all watching them through the process of being terrified for their lives from bombs, from being shot at and having to run, which I've had calls with her where she's like, 'I can hear the gunfire', and she's having to run, and then now calls that there's no food there. 'It's a silent killer. They're killing them so slowly and quietly, but they're killing them at every single point. And it's just devastating to watch. It's heartbreaking. It's sickening.' Join the Daily Record WhatsApp community! Get the latest news sent straight to your messages by joining our WhatsApp community today. You'll receive daily updates on breaking news as well as the top headlines across Scotland. No one will be able to see who is signed up and no one can send messages except the Daily Record team. All you have to do is click here if you're on mobile, select 'Join Community' and you're in! If you're on a desktop, simply scan the QR code above with your phone and click 'Join Community'. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don't like our community, you can check out any time you like. To leave our community click on the name at the top of your screen and choose 'exit group'. If you're curious, you can read our Privacy Notice. Ms El-Nakla said she feels 'physically sick' hearing about her family's situation in Gaza, adding that she feels 'completely inadequate as a cousin, as a human being, that I can't do anything'. She said she was angry with the UK Government, which she said 'isn't doing anything' to 'try to stop the genocide'. She said aid must urgently be allowed in to stop the 'catastrophic starvation of two million people'. "We are living in a dystopia where we are just watching two million people slowly die,' she said. 'For our own humanity, how can we live with that? Our Government has to do something.' The UK Government and Israeli embassy in London have been approached