Iran Uncovers Rigged Device in Nuclear Program, Similar to Pager Attack

A billboard with a picture of late Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh, late senior Iranian military commander General Qassem Soleimani, late Lebanon's Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah and late Hamas leader Yahya Al-Sinwar is seen on a street in Tehran, Iran, January 16, 2025. Majid Asgaripour/WANA (West Asia News Agency) via REUTERS
A billboard with a picture of late Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh, late senior Iranian military commander General Qassem Soleimani, late Lebanon's Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah and late Hamas leader Yahya Al-Sinwar is seen on a street in Tehran, Iran, January 16, 2025. Majid Asgaripour/WANA (West Asia News Agency) via REUTERS
TT

Iran Uncovers Rigged Device in Nuclear Program, Similar to Pager Attack

A billboard with a picture of late Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh, late senior Iranian military commander General Qassem Soleimani, late Lebanon's Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah and late Hamas leader Yahya Al-Sinwar is seen on a street in Tehran, Iran, January 16, 2025. Majid Asgaripour/WANA (West Asia News Agency) via REUTERS
A billboard with a picture of late Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh, late senior Iranian military commander General Qassem Soleimani, late Lebanon's Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah and late Hamas leader Yahya Al-Sinwar is seen on a street in Tehran, Iran, January 16, 2025. Majid Asgaripour/WANA (West Asia News Agency) via REUTERS

Iran’s Vice President for Strategic Affairs, Mohammad Javad Zarif, revealed that a sabotage attempt targeting the country's uranium enrichment program had been thwarted.

The plot involved a rigged component meant for the country’s centrifuges, which was acquired through intermediaries assisting Iran in evading sanctions.

In a televised interview streamed exclusively online, Zarif cautioned that Iran is facing growing security challenges in acquiring spare parts due to US sanctions.

“Our colleagues had purchased a centrifuge platform for the Atomic Energy Organization, and it was discovered that explosives had been embedded inside it, which they managed to detect," he told the Hozour (Presence) online program.

It was not clear when the alleged incident occurred.

On September 17, thousands of pagers used by Hezbollah members exploded simultaneously in Beirut’s southern suburbs and its other strongholds. Iranian Ambassador to Lebanon Mojtaba Amani was among the injured.

The attack, followed by a second bombing the next day targeting walkie-talkies, killed 39 people and injured over 3,400.

“The issue with the pagers in Lebanon turned out to be a multi-year process, meticulously orchestrated by the Zionists (Israelis),” said Zarif.

Following the pager explosions, Iranian officials and lawmakers warned of potential Israeli infiltrations similar to the attacks. As a precaution, the communication devices used by Iranian officials underwent security reviews.

This is not the first time Iran has raised concerns over potential infiltration through spare parts. In late August 2023, Iranian state television reported the thwarting of an Israeli "plot" to sabotage its ballistic missile and drone programs using faulty spare parts acquired from a foreign supplier.

Authorities stated the parts could have caused explosions or malfunctions in Iranian missiles before launch.

The Israeli intelligence agency Mossad was accused of orchestrating the shipment of defective parts and electronic chips used in missiles and drones.

A defense ministry official confirmed that a “network of agents” had attempted to introduce the rigged components.

In April 2021, an explosion at Iran’s Natanz uranium enrichment facility, which housed hundreds of centrifuges, was blamed on Israel’s Mossad.

Alireza Zakani, then a member of parliament and now Tehran's mayor, said the blast was caused by “300 pounds of explosives planted in equipment sent abroad for repairs.”

The explosion destroyed the electrical distribution system 50 meters underground.



Trump Believes Nuclear Deal Possible with ‘Scared’ and ‘Weakened’ Iran

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian speaks during the 46th anniversary of the 1979 revolution in Tehran, Iran, February 10, 2025. (Reuters)
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian speaks during the 46th anniversary of the 1979 revolution in Tehran, Iran, February 10, 2025. (Reuters)
TT

Trump Believes Nuclear Deal Possible with ‘Scared’ and ‘Weakened’ Iran

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian speaks during the 46th anniversary of the 1979 revolution in Tehran, Iran, February 10, 2025. (Reuters)
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian speaks during the 46th anniversary of the 1979 revolution in Tehran, Iran, February 10, 2025. (Reuters)

US President Donald Trump predicted on Monday that Washington would make a deal with Iran to prevent it from developing its nuclear program, but added that Tehran is very frightened because its defenses have been allegedly destroyed in an Israeli strike last year.

In an interview with Fox News, Trump said Iran's military vulnerabilities appeared to have left it in a weakened position, making negotiations more appealing than confrontation.

He said he prefers diplomacy over military escalation. “I'd much rather see a deal with Iran where we can do a deal, supervise, check it, inspect it,” he stated, adding that Israel will not attack Iran if an agreement is reached between Washington and Tehran.

“Iran is very concerned. Iran is very frightened, to be honest with you, because their defense is pretty much gone,” Trump said.

“Everybody thinks Israel - with our help or our approval - will go in and bomb the hell out of them,” Trump said, stressing that Israel would need US support for such a strike.

In Tehran, President Masoud Pezeshkian continued to sharply criticize the US, while hardline newspapers applauded his speech marking the anniversary of the 1979 revolution on Monday.

In reference to the order that Trump signed last week to design new sanctions on Iran, Pezeshkian said, “Those who engage in bullying, massacres, and provision of weapons of mass destruction to those who kill innocent people are the ones initiating war and bloodshed.”

“Only in peace and harmony can we truly host and welcome each other,” he said.

“Iran is doing outreach in the region and also globally, seeking more peaceful relations,” he remarked. “If the US were sincere about negotiations, why did they sanction us?”

He said Tehran “does not seek war...but will not yield to foreign pressure.”

On Friday, Iran's Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei said talks with the US were “not smart, wise, or honorable,” but he stopped short of renewing a ban on direct talks with Washington decreed during the first Trump administration in 2018.

Echoing Khamenei’s statement, the parliamentary National Security and Foreign Policy Committee said on Monday: “Negotiation with the US is not prohibited but has proven irrational and damaging.”

The Ham-Mihan newspaper said: “Pezeshkian’s speech supports the Supreme Leader’s position on Trump.” In its editorial, the Arman Amroz newspaper described Trump as a “crazy delusional.”