Israel let loose a barrage of attacks against the IAEA on Thursday following the nuclear inspection agency alluding to taking a weaker line with Iran over certain probes into nuclear violations.
On Tuesday and Wednesday, The Jerusalem Post reported and it was leaked by multiple outlets that the IAEA was close to closing or at least shelving its probe into the undeclared nuclear site at Marivan/Abadeh.
Even if the IAEA inspectors do tell their Board of Governors next week that they are shelving that file, there would still be two other probes left open at other undeclared nuclear sites.
But the closure of the Marivan/Abadeh probe, combined with a possible closure or shelving of a probe into Iran enriching molecules of uranium up to the 84% level, the closest ever to the 90% weaponized level, set off fireworks from Israeli officials as a misplaced messaging of weakness to the Islamic Republic.
“The closure of the Marivan Iranian safeguard case by the International Atomic Energy Agency is a matter of great concern. The explanations provided by Iran for the presence of nuclear material at the site are not reliable or technically possible. Iran continues to lie to the IAEA and deceive the international community,” said the Foreign Ministry.
"The closure of the Marivan Iranian safeguard case by the International Atomic Energy Agency is a matter of great concern"
Israel's Foreign Ministry
The Foreign Ministry continued, “The yielding of the director-general of the IAEA…to Iranian political pressure is very disappointing, mainly because the information in the file implicitly points to two faces of blatant Iranian violations of the inspection agreements.”
Moreover, the ministry said that “closing the case could have extremely dangerous consequences, and it conveys a message to the Iranians that they are not required to pay a price for their violations and that they can continue to deceive the international community on their way to achieving a full military nuclear program.”
In addition, the ministry said, “closing the case in this manner severely damages the professional credibility of the IAEA.”
Until Thursday’s attack on the IAEA by the Foreign Ministry, Israel had been giving IAEA Director-General Rafael Grossi compliments for holding Tehran to account for its nuclear violations since he took office in December 2019.
More specifically, Israel favored Grossi over his predecessor, Yukiya Amano, who Israelis viewed as too weak on Iran and too invested in maintaining the 2015 Iran nuclear deal, even if that meant ignoring nuclear violations.
The attack on Grossi by the ministry was that much more significant since Israel and the IAEA have been working together more positively during his term.
Netanyahu: Israel will prevent Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons
Defensive Minister Yoav Gallant also addressed the Iran issue in a speech at an IDF ceremony, saying “the dangers to Israel continue to grow more severe and it is becoming more likely that we will need to fulfill our obligations to defend the security of our country and the future of the Jewish nation.”
He added that the threat posed by Iran was complex, but that the IDF would know how to manage the issue and act if necessary.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said, “I hear all of the media references regarding Iran, so I have an unequivocal and clear message to Iran and to the international community. Israel will do all that it must to prevent Iran from getting a nuclear weapon.”ישראל תעשה כל מה שהיא צריכה לעשות כדי למנוע מאיראן נשק גרעיני >> pic.twitter.com/kBlyOccCad
— Benjamin Netanyahu - בנימין נתניהו (@netanyahu) June 1, 2023