Key Points and Summary – Iran’s President, Masoud Pezeshkian, has declared in a new interview that Tehran is “ready to strike deep inside Israel again” and will continue its uranium enrichment program.
-He defiantly claimed that Iran’s nuclear capability is “in the minds of our scientists,” not just in the facilities recently bombed by the U.S.
-This comes as Amnesty International accuses Iran of committing war crimes for its “flagrant violation of international humanitarian law” by using cluster munitions against populated areas in Israel during last month’s conflict.
-Talks with European powers are now underway under the threat of renewed UN sanctions.
Iran Won’t Give Up Its Nuclear Program
Following its 12-day war with Israel last month, and the U.S. attack on its nuclear facilities, Iran reached a ceasefire that has since held.
The country this week was to hold talks with three European countries about possibly limiting its enriched uranium capabilities, under the threat of the return of U.N. sanctions.
However, in a new interview this week, Iran’s president vowed to continue its nuclear program, albeit for what it calls peaceful purposes.
President Masoud Pezeshkian said in an interview, published Wednesday, with Al Jazeera that Iran is ready for more war with Israel.
“We are fully prepared for any new Israeli military move, and our armed forces are ready to strike deep inside Israel again,” Pezeshkian said in the interview. He added that “we are not very optimistic about” the ceasefire with Israel.
“That is why we have prepared ourselves for any possible scenario and any potential response. Israel has harmed us, and we have also harmed it,” the Iranian president added. “It has dealt us powerful blows, and we have struck it hard in its depths, but it is concealing its losses.”
Pezeshkian also struck a defiant tone, stating that Iran and the U.S. had failed to eliminate Iran’s hierarchy and knowledge base. He also accused Israel of attempting to assassinate him in mid-June, at a meeting of the Supreme National Security Council in Tehran.
Still Enriching
The Iranian president also vowed that Iran’s uranium enrichment would continue, but that it would be done “within the framework of international laws.”
“[US President Donald] Trump says that Iran should not have a nuclear weapon and we accept this because we reject nuclear weapons and this is our political, religious, humanitarian, and strategic position,” Pezeshkian said.
“We believe in diplomacy, so any future negotiations must be according to a win-win logic, and we will not accept threats and dictates.”
He also denied Trump’s frequent declarations that Iran’s nuclear program was “obliterated.”
“Our nuclear capabilities are in the minds of our scientists and not in the facilities,” he said.
The Talks Begin
Iran was set, on Friday, to meet with British, French, and German officials to discuss Iran’s nuclear program.
The talks are taking place in Istanbul, also the site of recent talks between Russia and Ukraine, a place which has emerged as a go-to place for international negotiations in which the U.S. is not involved.
The European countries are threatening to trigger a provision in the 2015 JCPOA agreement that would reimpose sanctions on Iran.
“Iranian diplomats have previously warned that Tehran could withdraw from the global nuclear non-proliferation treaty if UN sanctions are reimposed. Restoring sanctions would deepen Iran’s international isolation and place further pressure on its already strained economy,” the Times of Israel reported about the talks.
“Violation of International Law”
Meanwhile, speaking of the Iran/Israel war, Amnesty International said Thursday that Iran’s use of cluster munitions in that war qualifies as “a flagrant violation of international humanitarian law.”
At issue are the missiles that Iran fired at Israel.
“Last month, the Iranian forces fired ballistic missiles whose warheads contained submunitions into populated residential areas of Israel, in attacks endangering civilians,” Amnesty International said.
“Cluster munitions are inherently indiscriminate weapons that must never be used. By using such weapons in or near populated residential areas, Iranian forces endangered civilian lives and demonstrated clear disregard for international humanitarian law,” Erika Guevara Rosas, Amnesty International’s Senior Director for Research, Advocacy, Policy and Campaigns, said in the organization’s announcement.
“Civilians, particularly children, are most at risk of injury or death from unexploded submunitions. Iranian forces’ deliberate use of such inherently indiscriminate weapons is a blatant violation of international humanitarian law.”
About the Author: Stephen Silver
Stephen Silver is an award-winning journalist, essayist, and film critic, and contributor to the Philadelphia Inquirer, the Jewish Telegraphic Agency, Broad Street Review, and Splice Today. The co-founder of the Philadelphia Film Critics Circle, Stephen lives in suburban Philadelphia with his wife and two sons. For over a decade, Stephen has authored thousands of articles that focus on politics, national security, technology, and the economy. Follow him on X (formerly Twitter) at @StephenSilver, and subscribe to his Substack newsletter.
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