Did Iran really transfer its nuclear materials? An expert explains

Egypt Independent

23-06-2025

Following the rapid escalation between Iran and Israel, questions have been raised regarding where or not Iran was truthful about transferring its nuclear materials, or how it even did so.
The US launched an attack early Sunday morning, targeting three nuclear facilities in Fordow, Natanz, and Isfahan.
Trump described the attack as 'successful.'
Meanwhile, Reuters reported a senior Iranian source as saying that most of the highly enriched uranium at Iran's Fordow nuclear facility had been moved to an undisclosed location prior to the US attacks.
The former head of the Egyptian Nuclear Power Plants Authority, Amjad al-Wakeel, clarified as to how Iran was able to pull this off.
Special Containers and Tunnels
Wakeel stated in a post on his Facebook account that despite the difficulty of conclusive confirmation without more official information, Iran transferred approximately 500 kilograms of highly enriched uranium at 60 percent, from the Fordow and Natanz sites.
Nuclear materials can be transferred using special containers, via specially equipped vehicles, possibly civilian vehicles, for camouflage purposes, or through special tunnels.
Regarding the International Atomic Energy Agency's cameras installed at nuclear facilities, Wakeel raised the possibility that they might be faulty, have limited access, were not fully installed, or that the agency had not received their data in real time.
Monitoring Takes Time
On the surveillance and reconnaissance role of satellites, the former head of the Nuclear Power Plants Authority noted that although they record images around the clock, these images require careful analysis and a specialized team, which could give Iran a margin of time to act without immediate detection.
'As for international intelligence agencies, no matter how capable they are, deception and misinformation are always possible, and no security system is completely immune to surprises. This possibility is further heightened by the reactions coming from Iran,' he explained.
Wakeel concluded his post by saying, 'Ultimately, these questions remain fundamental and sensitive and reveal the need to reassess the results of the US strike.'