Iran has launched another sharp criticism of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) for staying silent after US and Israeli forces in June bombed Iranian nuclear facilities that were under full IAEA safeguards. Addressing a conference in Tehran on International Law Under Assault: Aggression and Defense, the head of the Atomic Energy Agency of Iran (AEOI) Mohammad Eslami said this was the first time in history that nuclear sites actively monitored by the IAEA were attacked with no condemnation.
The event, organised by the Foreign Ministry’s Institute for Political and International Studies (IPIS), brought together diplomats and analysts from Iran and several other countries, including France, Italy, Greece, the UK, Russia, Iraq, and Lebanon.
Eslami warned that Iran faces daily threats of new strikes and asked what protections, if any, the IAEA intends to provide for facilities it supervises. He said the West had provide that negotiations and international agreements “have no effect” when political pressure overrides law. Despite possessing only 3% of global nuclear capacity, Iran received nearly a quarter of all IAEA inspections, with 80% of IAEA global safeguards activity concentrated on Iran. Eslami said this imbalance shows a deep double standard – one that could eventually be “imposed on any nation”.
Eslami revealed that a fuel production facility at Tehran’s research reactor was among the sites struck in June, along with a reactor essential for producing radioactive medicines. He said Iran has consistently implemented necessary measures to safeguard its nuclear experts, facilities, and the surrounding environment, preventing the leakage of materials and ensuring no contamination occurs.
He stressed that the precision of the attack indicated a deliberate misuse of confidential information shared with the IAEA, noting that the only laboratory room developed in coordination with the agency was specifically targeted. He warned that such misuse of sensitive data by a third party represents a broader threat to global security.
He urged the IAEA to adopt a more balanced and transparent approach, stressing the need for the agency to monitor and report on the actions of all involved parties, not just Iran. “What happens to Iran today could happen to any other country tomorrow,” he cautioned, adding that international norms cannot be enforced through selective accountability or double standards.
At the same event, Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi revealed that Iran is no longer enriching uranium after the Israeli and US strikes in June damaged its facilities, but stressed that Iran will not give up its right to enrichment or nuclear technology. He said the strikes had forced Iran’s entire enrichment programme to stop, even as the West continues to pressure Tehran over compliance and transparency. “The founding principles of international law are facing the toughest attacks from powers that were supposed to be its guarantors,” he noted.
He added that Washington’s latest posture shows no willingness to pursue “equal and fair negotiations,” responding to remarks by US President Donald Trump hinting at possible nuclear talks. “The US cannot expect to gain what it couldn’t in war through negotiations,” he said. “Iran will always be prepared to engage in diplomacy, but not negotiations meant for dictation.”
In an interview with Al Mayadeen Professor Mohammad Marandi, a strategic affairs expert at Tehran University said that decades of failed diplomacy, broken promises, and ineffective pressure have steadily eroded the West’s credibility and leverage in Tehran. He also criticised the IAEA, saying Iran no longer trusts the organisation because of intelligence leaks to the US and Israel, adding that Tehran will not share sensitive nuclear information until it is assured of its security. “The United States, the International Atomic Energy Agency, the Europeans, the Israeli regime have lost all leverage,” he asserted.
Meanwhile, Iran’s Judiciary Chief Gholamhossein Mohseni Ejei has ordered legal action against the US after the US President Donald Trump’s admission that the US had directly participated in the Israeli regime’s attacks against Iran during the 12-day war in June.
At a meeting of the Judiciary’s supreme council, he stressed that such a clear and explicit admission carries significant consequences under established criminal and international legal principles. He instructed Iran’s prosecutor-general and the Judiciary’s deputy for international affairs to take necessary steps to prepare proceedings for addressing the crime in both international and domestic courts.
In comments on 6 November, Trump had claimed responsibility for Israel’s initial attack on Iran, contradicting previous US assertions that Israel acted unilaterally. “Israel attacked first. That attack was very, very powerful. I was very much in charge of that,” Trump told reporters.
