Access restricted at Iran’s most sensitive nuclear facilities, says IAEA chief

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has resumed inspection activities in Iran, but continues to face restrictions at some of the country’s most sensitive nuclear facilities, IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi said.

Grossi noted that inspectors had returned to certain sites but were limited to locations unaffected by June’s attacks, Caliber.Az reports, citing Iranian media.

“We are only allowed to access sites that were not hit,” he said, describing the resumption as important but insufficient.

Grossi emphasized the significance of sites such as Natanz, Isfahan, and Fordow, which remain inaccessible. “These other three sites are even more significant, since they still contain substantial amounts of nuclear material and equipment, and we need to return there,” he said. He added that determining whether there had been “any practical progress” in restoring full inspections remains the agency’s most pressing issue in Iran.

The restrictions follow Israeli strikes on Iranian nuclear and military targets on June 13, which Israel said were intended to disrupt a covert nuclear weapons program — a claim Iran denies. The attacks triggered 12 days of regional hostilities, including a one-off US strike on Iranian nuclear facilities on June 22. Iran responded with missile attacks on a US air base in Qatar, asserting that it did not seek further escalation.

Iran’s foreign ministry has warned that a recent IAEA resolution could complicate ongoing dialogue over the country’s nuclear program. The agency has long sought access to Natanz, Isfahan, and Fordow, where uranium enrichment and other sensitive activities occur, stating that oversight at these locations is critical to verifying Tehran’s nuclear commitments.

By Vafa Guliyeva