Iran Diverts Much of its Uranium for Peaceful Medical Research, Israeli Intel Says
Both Israeli intelligence and the latest IAEA report say Iran is using its 20 percent enriched uranium for medical isotopes
Iran has diverted much of its enriched uranium to peaceful scientific research and medical isotopes, according to the International Atomic Energy Agency’s latest report and intelligence obtained by Israeli sources.
The report, as well as Israeli intelligence, states that Iran on several recent occasions has used the 20 percent enriched uranium – the highest it has and the portion of the program which most riled hawks in the West – to manufacture fuel rods for research for possible cancer treatment.
This use is exactly the use that Iran has stated its 20 percent enriched uranium is for, as opposed to what war-mongers in Israel and the United States claimed it was for, a creeping nuclear weapons program.
Senior Israeli defense officials told Haaretz that “Iran has moved the wall back by eight months at least,” because uranium allocated to this research is very difficult to revert back for any sort of weaponization.
Senior Israeli officials are now in the process of hyping this aspect of the IAEA’s findings, even though the latest report is from back in August. These Israeli officials are telling the press that Iran’s actions in this respect account for the recent dialing back of Israeli pressure on the US to back a preventive military strike on Iran.
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JLS
October 8th, 2012 at 9:17 pm
Uh oh…this is going to make some people in Washington very angry, very angry indeed.
Reader
October 8th, 2012 at 10:44 pm
“Senior Israeli officials are now in the process of hyping this aspect of the IAEA’s findings, even though the latest report is from back in August. These Israeli officials are telling the press that Iran’s actions in this respect account for the recent dialing back of Israeli pressure on the US to back a preventive military strike on Iran.”
This is the most telling to Israeli/US actions and words since this issue was ‘amped’ up in the last 2 years or so. They have known this all along… There was no pressing reason (e.g. fear of Iranian nuclear weapons) that would justify an attack on Iran, nor the civilian-hurting sanction regime (Iraq redux). They are now spinning this as justifying their ‘backing down’, when it isn’t new information at all. The entire threat of immediate bombing of Iran was a bogeyman, albeit is was used to justify sanctions (which continue).
walshtrhee
October 9th, 2012 at 5:42 am
"divert" in "divert for medical use" represents main stream media language, Iran consistently has stated that 20% is needed for its cancer patients, in other words there is no diversion, it was always meant and badly needed for medical use.
What’s the Real Reason Israel Dialed Back the Push for War on Iran? « Antiwar.com Blog
October 9th, 2012 at 6:35 am
[...] noted in the news section today, Israeli intelligence is now hyping IAEA findings from back in August that say Iran has on several [...]
hass
October 9th, 2012 at 10:40 am
The isotopes are not used "for a possible cancer treatment" — isotopes are used in diagnoses of cancer (and other conditions.) Iran doesn't claim to be treating cancer.
For more info on this reactor: http://forden.armscontrolwonk.com/archive/2492/a-…
Note that this reactor is far too small to be useful for making nukes. Preventing Iran from buying the fuel for it served no "non-proliferation" purpose whatsoever. Instead, it only encouraged Iran to enrich to 20% from 3.5%. What a great "success" that policy turned out to be, huh
Ike_Hall
October 9th, 2012 at 5:42 pm
+1 for the Marvin the Martian reference.