Official at Iranian atomic authority says intelligence uncovered plot against unfinished Arak heavy water reactor
A senior Iranian official says authorities detected a sabotage attempt at the country’s only heavy water reactor but neutralised it before any damage was done.
Asghar Zarean, a senior official in charge of nuclear security at the Atomic Energy Organisation of Iran, said that Iran’s intelligence agencies were instrumental in uncovering the plot, according to a report from the Far semi-official news agency quoted by the Associated Press.
The report did not provide further details about the kind of sabotage detected. The facility referred to is Arak, Iran’s only heavy water reactor, which is still not fully operational.
Another of Iran’s nuclear facilities, the uranium enrichment plant at Natanz, was the target of the “Stuxnet” computer virus in 2010 which temporarily disrupted operation of centrifuges, a key component in nuclear fuel production.
Tehran says Stuxnet and other computer virus attacks are part of a concerted campaign by Israel, the US and their allies to undermine its nuclear programme.
Arak was central to a deal cut last year between Western powers and Iran that lifted some sanctions in return for concessions on Iran’s nuclear programme.
Tehran pledged it would stop developing the facility, which Western powers say could yield plutonium as an alternative fuel for weapons. Iran denies any such goal, and says the facility is for research and peaceful purposes only.