Iran could restart uranium enrichment "in a matter of months" following recent U.S. airstrikes on its nuclear facilities, the head of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) warned, signaling that the damage inflicted by American forces was not sufficient to dismantle Tehran's nuclear capabilities. In an interview released Saturday by CBS News, IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi said that despite the scale of the attacks, Iran retains the technological and industrial capacity to resume its nuclear program. "They can have, in a matter of months, a few cascades of centrifuges spinning and producing enriched uranium or less than that," Grossi said. "The damage is severe, but not total." On June 22, the United States launched a coordinated assault on Iran's nuclear infrastructure, dropping six bunker-buster bombs on the Fordo nuclear facility and unleashing dozens of cruise missiles on key sites in Natanz and Isfahan. The operation followed rising tensions between Iran and Israel and was aimed at halting what Washington described as Iran's expanding nuclear threat. In the wake of the strikes, U.S. officials have pushed back on reports suggesting the attacks merely delayed Iran's progress by several months, rather than eliminating it entirely. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi admitted the bombings caused "excessive and serious" damage but insisted that Iran retains core capabilities. Grossi echoed that concern, saying Iran's nuclear knowledge and infrastructure cannot be erased. "You cannot disinvent this," he noted. "Iran is a very sophisticated country in terms of nuclear technology." He also raised alarm over unexplained traces of uranium found at undeclared Iranian sites, saying the IAEA still lacks credible explanations about their origin. On the issue of Iran's 408.6-kilogram stockpile of uranium enriched to 60%, enough to build more than nine nuclear bombs if further enriched, Grossi said, "Some could have been destroyed as part of the attack, but some could have been moved." Grossi emphasized the urgency of restoring access for IAEA inspectors: "There has to be at some point a clarification." However, Araghchi announced Saturday that Grossi would be barred from entering Iran, a move swiftly condemned by U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who called it "a dangerous step toward further nuclear opacity." The latest developments come on the heels of a 12-day war between Israel and Iran, which erupted on June 13 after Israeli airstrikes targeted Iranian military, nuclear, and civilian sites. Iran's Health Ministry reported 606 killed and over 5,300 injured. In response, Tehran launched drone and missile barrages that killed at least 29 people in Israel and wounded more than 3,400, according to figures from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. The conflict ended with a U.S.-brokered ceasefire on June 24. — Agencies
