Iran on Tuesday called for action against Israel, following a recent blast at the Natanz nuclear facility that has been blamed on the Jewish state.
“This method Israel is using is dangerous, and it could spread to anywhere in the world,” government spokesman Ali Rabiei said during a press conference, according to a translation of his remarks by Israel’s Channel 12 news.
His comments came as Iran appeared to publicly acknowledge on Tuesday that last week’s fire at Natanz, which badly damaged a building used for producing centrifuges, was not an accident. Israeli TV reports, without naming sources, have said the blast destroyed the laboratory in which Iran developed faster centrifuges and set back the Iranian nuclear program by one or two years.
Nour News, seen as a mouthpiece of Iran’s Supreme Council of National Security, claimed that the blast at the Natanz facility, which came amid a series of mysterious disasters that struck sensitive Iranian sites in recent days, bore similarity to other strikes against the country’s security infrastructure.
While asserting that “an airstrike on the Natanz plant is almost impossible” due to its strong air defenses, an article on the site said that “the combination of intelligence, logistics, action and the volume of destruction” prove that the incident was deliberate.
The Washington Post and New York Times quoted Middle Eastern officials earlier this week as saying the blast at Natanz was caused by a large bomb planted by Israeli operatives.
“There was an opportunity, and someone in Israel calculated the risk and took the opportunity,” one official told the Post.
The official also called the blast a “wake-up call” meant to deter Iran amid advancements in its nuclear program, and said those who planted the explosives had significant insight into the country’s nuclear program.
“Doing such a thing takes some serious preparation and time,” the official said.
Iran admitted Sunday that Natanz incurred “considerable” damage from the fire, as satellite pictures appeared to show widespread devastation at the sensitive facility. It had previously sought to downplay the damage from the blaze, which analysts said had likely destroyed an above-ground lab being used to prepare advanced centrifuges before they were installed underground.
A member of the Revolutionary Guard confirmed to the Times on Sunday that an explosive was used, but didn’t specify who was responsible.
According to an Israeli TV report Friday, Israel was bracing for a possible retaliation from Iran if it determines that Jerusalem was behind the explosion.
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