Iran to open new enrichment facility after censure
by UN nuclear watchdog
The U.N. nuclear watchdog’s board of governors on Thursday formally found that Iran isn’t complying with its nuclear obligations for the first time in 20 years, a move that could lead to further tensions and set in motion an effort to restore United Nations sanctions on Tehran later this year.
Iran reacted immediately, saying it will establish a new enrichment facility “in a secure location” and that “other measures are also being planned.”
“The Islamic Republic of Iran has no choice but to respond to this political resolution,” the Iranian Foreign Ministry and the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran said in a joint statement.
U.S. President Donald Trump previously warned that Israel or America could carry out airstrikes targeting Iranian nuclear facilities if negotiations failed — and some American personnel and their families have begun leaving the region over the tensions, which come ahead of a new round of Iran-U.S. talks Sunday in Oman. In Israel, the U.S. Embassy ordered American government employees and their families to remain in the Tel Aviv area over security concerns.
Nineteen countries on the International Atomic Energy Agency’s board, which represents the agency’s member nations, voted for the resolution, according to diplomats who spoke on condition of anonymity to describe the outcome of the closed-doors vote.
Russia, China and Burkina Faso opposed it, 11 abstained and two did not vote.
In the draft resolution seen by The Associated Press, the board of governors renews a call on Iran to provide answers “without delay” in a long-running investigation into uranium traces found at several locations that Tehran has failed to declare as nuclear sites.
Western officials suspect that the uranium traces could provide further evidence that Iran had a secret nuclear weapons program until 2003.
The resolution was put forward by France, the United Kingdom, Germany and the United States.
Iran lists steps in retaliation for the IAEA vote
Speaking to Iranian state television after the vote, the spokesman for the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran said that his agency immediately informed the IAEA of “specific and effective” actions Tehran would take.
“One is the launch of a third secure site” for enrichment, spokesman Behrouz Kamalvandi said. He did not elaborate on the location, but the organization’s chief Mohammad Eslami later described the site as “already built, prepared, and located in a secure and invulnerable place.”
Iran has two underground sites at Fordo and Natanz and has been building tunnels in the mountains near Natanz since suspected Israeli sabotage attacks targeted that facility.
The other step would be replacing old centrifuges for advanced ones at Fordo. “The implication of this is that our production of enriched materials will significantly increase,” Kamalvandi said.
According to the draft resolution, “Iran’s many failures to uphold its obligations since 2019 to provide the Agency with full and timely cooperation regarding undeclared nuclear material and activities at multiple undeclared locations in Iran … constitutes non-compliance with its obligations under its Safeguards Agreement.”
Under those obligations, which are part of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, Iran is legally bound to declare all nuclear material and activities and allow IAEA inspectors to verify that none of it is being diverted from peaceful uses.
The draft resolution also finds that the IAEA’s “inability … to provide assurance that Iran’s nuclear program is exclusively peaceful gives rise to questions that are within the competence of the United Nations Security Council, as the organ bearing the main responsibility for the maintenance of international peace and security.”
The draft resolution made a direct reference to the U.S.-Iran talks, stressing its “support for a diplomatic solution to the problems posed by the Iranian nuclear program, including the talks between the United States and Iran, leading to an agreement that addresses all international concerns related to Iran’s nuclear activities, encouraging all parties to constructively engage in diplomacy.”
Still a chance for Iran to cooperate with IAEA
A senior Western diplomat last week described the resolution as a “serious step,” but added that Western nations are “not closing the door to diplomacy on this issue.” However, if Iran fails to cooperate, an extraordinary IAEA board meeting will likely be held in the summer, during which another resolution could get passed that will refer the issue to the Security Council, the diplomat said on condition of anonymity because he wasn’t authorized to discuss the issue with the media.
The three European nations have repeatedly threatened in the past to reinstate, or “snapback,” sanctions that have been lifted under the original 2015 Iran nuclear deal if Iran does not provide “technically credible” answers to the U.N. nuclear watchdog’s questions.
In a joint statement to the IAEA board of governors, the three European nations said that they would “spare no efforts to work towards a diplomatic solution” but added that without a satisfying deal, they would “consider triggering the snapback mechanism to address threats to international peace and security arising from Iran’s nuclear program.”
The authority to reestablish those sanctions by the complaint of any member of the original 2015 nuclear deal expires in October, putting the West on a clock to exert pressure on Tehran over its program before losing that power.
The resolution comes on heels of the IAEA’s so-called “comprehensive report” that was circulated among member states last weekend. In the report, the U.N. nuclear watchdog said that Iran’s cooperation with the agency has “been less than satisfactory” when it comes to uranium traces discovered by agency inspectors at several locations in Iran.
One of the sites became known publicly in 2018, after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu revealed it at the United Nations and called it a clandestine nuclear warehouse hidden at a rug-cleaning plant. Iran denied this, but in 2019, IAEA inspectors detected the presence of uranium traces there as well as at two other sites.
America knows it cannot protect all Americans in the Middle East if and when war breaks out with Iran, Israel and USA, so it is removing some and increasing protection on those who must remain.
U.S. reducing diplomatic, military presence in Middle East
as tensions rise
The United States is drawing down the presence of staffers who are not deemed essential to operations in the Middle East and their loved ones due to the potential for regional unrest, the State Department and military said Wednesday.
The State Department said it has ordered the departure of all nonessential personnel from the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad based on its latest review and a commitment “to keeping Americans safe, both at home and abroad.” The embassy already had been on limited staffing, and the order will not affect a large number of personnel.
The department, however, also is authorizing the departure of nonessential personnel and family members from Bahrain and Kuwait. That gives them the option of leaving those countries at government expense and with government assistance.
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth “has authorized the voluntary departure of military dependents from locations” across the region, U.S. Central Command said in a statement. The command “is monitoring the developing tension in the Middle East.”
White House spokeswoman Anna Kelly confirmed the moves.
“The State Department regularly reviews American personnel abroad, and this decision was made as a result of a recent review,” Kelly said.
Global News has asked Global Affairs Canada if it is conducting a similar drawdown of Canadian diplomatic staff in the region.
The top U.S. military officer for the Middle East, Gen. Erik Kurilla, was scheduled to testify before the Senate Armed Services Committee on Thursday, but that testimony has now been postponed, according to the committee’s website. The Pentagon did not have an immediate comment on why Kurilla’s testimony was postponed.
Tensions in the region have been rising in recent days as talks between the U.S. and Iran over its rapidly advancing nuclear program appear to have hit an impasse. The talks seek to limit Iran’s nuclear program in exchange for the lifting of some of the crushing economic sanctions that the U.S. has imposed on the Islamic Republic. Iran insists its nuclear program is peaceful.
The next round of talks — the sixth — had been tentatively scheduled for this weekend in Oman, according to two U.S. officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss diplomatic matters. However, those officials said Wednesday that it looked increasingly unlikely that the talks would happen.
President Donald Trump, who has previously said Israel or the U.S. could carry out airstrikes targeting Iranian nuclear facilities if negotiations failed, gave a less-than-optimistic view about reaching a deal with Iran, telling the New York Post’s “Pod Force One” podcast that he was “getting more and more less confident about” a deal.
“They seem to be delaying, and I think that’s a shame. I’m less confident now than I would have been a couple of months ago. Something happened to them,” he said in the interview recorded Monday and released Wednesday.
Iran’s mission to the U.N. posted on social media that “threats of overwhelming force won’t change the facts.”
“Iran is not seeking a nuclear weapon, and U.S. militarism only fuels instability,” the Iranian mission wrote.
Iranian Defense Minister Gen. Aziz Nasirzadeh separately told journalists Wednesday that he hoped talks with the U.S. would yield results, though Tehran stood ready to respond.
“If conflict is imposed on us, the opponent’s casualties will certainly be more than ours, and in that case, America must leave the region, because all its bases are within our reach,” he said. “We have access to them, and we will target all of them in the host countries without hesitation.”
Meanwhile, the Board of Governors at the International Atomic Energy Agency was potentially set to vote on a measure to censure Iran. That could set in motion an effort to snap back United Nations sanctions on Iran via a measure in Tehran’s 2015 nuclear deal with world powers that’s still active until October. Trump withdrew from that agreement in his first term.
Earlier Wednesday, a statement from the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations center, a Mideast-based effort overseen by the British navy, issued a warning to ships in the region that it “has been made aware of increased tensions within the region which could lead to an escalation of military activity having a direct impact on mariners.”
It urged caution in the Persian Gulf, the Gulf of Oman and the Strait of Hormuz. It did not name Iran, though those waterways have seen Iranian ship seizures and attacks in the past.
Meanwhile, Iraq’s state-run Iraqi News Agency said in a statement attributed to an unnamed government official that the evacuation of some nonessential employees from the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad was part of “procedures related to the U.S. diplomatic presence in a number of Middle Eastern countries, not just Iraq” and that Iraqi officials “have not recorded any security indicators that warrant an evacuation.”
“We reiterate that all security indicators and briefings support the escalating assessments of stability and the restoration of internal security,” the statement said.
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At least 5 local Gaza Humanitarian Foundation workers killed in ambush
June 12 (UPI) -- At least five Palestinians working for the Israel-U.S.-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation were killed and several injured after Hamas gunmen allegedly opened fire on a bus bringing them to one of its distribution hubs in southern Gaza.
GHF said the workers were among at least two dozen aboard the bus Wednesday night when they were killed west of the town of Khan Younis and that it feared others had been abducted.
"We are still gathering facts, but what we know is devastating: there are at least five fatalities, multiple injuries, and fear that some of our team members may have been taken hostage," GHF said in a statement.
"We condemn this heinous and deliberate attack in the strongest possible terms," it said, adding that GHF personnel and civilians receiving aid had been repeatedly threatened in recent days.
Threatened by Hamas, of course.
Israel Defense Forces said the incident vindicated its warnings that Hamas was intent on maintaining its stranglehold on the distribution of aid in the territory.
"We warned the world however we could: Hamas will stop at nothing to maintain control and prevent the effective delivery of aid. After their numerous attempts at spreading misinformation regarding the centers, intimidating the workers, and instigating violence next to the centers, Hamas chose murder and violence," the IDF said on X.
The new system of distributing Gaza humanitarian assistance that bypasses the United Nations and international aid NGO's has been plagued by problems since it began operating May 26.
The Hamas-run Health Ministry claimed 223 people have been killed and more than 1,500 injured trying to get to GHF's three designated hubs where food parcels are handed out daily, many of them shot by IDF troops. Israel denies opening fire on civilians, saying Hamas, which was intent on stopping people from accessing aid, was responsible.
On Wednesday, a hospital in Khan Younis claimed Israeli forces opened fire near one of the food distribution centers in Rafah, killing 14 people, while 25 were killed near a convoy of aid trucks and another GHF hub in the Netzarim corridor -- a central Israeli military buffer zone that dissects Gaza into two halves -- according to two Gaza City hospitals.
The Hamas-run Civil Defence agency again blamed Israeli forces, saying they opened fire but other reports said people were run over by trucks and that drivers and civilians were shot by unidentified Palestinian gunmen.
The IDF acknowledged firing toward suspects it said were moving toward its positions but insisted that only warning shots were discharged.
Hamas did not immediately comment on the latest incident but on Sunday warned its forces had "full authority and mandate to strike decisively against any entity or individual collaborating with the enemy's plans or with any rogue, criminal, or traitorous elements that violate the law and the traditions of our people."
"All agents, thieves, and armed criminal gangs are considered legitimate targets for the resistance and its security apparatus," said the group, which is designated as a terror organisation by the United States, European Union, Britain and most Western countries.
GHF's Facebook page announced Thursday that two of its three hubs, in the Tal Sultan neighborhood of Rafah and the "Saudi" district, were closed. It was unclear whether they had been closed after aid parcels had been handed out for the day, or had never opened in the first place.
On Wednesday evening, GHF posted a notice on the site, saying both sites would open to distribute boxes of aid at 12 noon, providing detailed instructions on how to get to the sites and urging people to avoid approaching or gathering outside the compounds ahead of time.
The new aid distribution system was put in place amid fears of a looming famine in Gaza after Israel imposed an aid blockade in March, saying it was necessary to prevent aid being brought in by the U.N. and international aid charities from being stolen by Hamas.
Argentina to move embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem
Argentinian President Javier Milei made the announcement
while speaking in Israel's Knesset
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (L) speaks in the Knesset during a special session with Argentine President Javier Milei (R) on Wednesday in Jerusalem. Photo by Debbie Hill/UPI | License Photo
June 11 (UPI) -- Argentina will move its embassy from a Tel Aviv suburb to Jerusalem next year, Argentinian President Javier Milei announced Wednesday night in a speech in his honor in Israel's Knesset.
Milei is participating in a three-day visit to Israel that began Tuesday.
In Jerusalem, he was welcomed in the Knesset by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Knesset Speaker Amir Ohana and Opposition Leader Yair Lapid.
They praised the warm ties between Israel and the South American nation under his leadership. Milei has been Argentina's president since 2023.
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"Javier, you are a true friend," Netanyahu said. "With this visit, we are bringing our relations to new heights. 12,000 kilometers [7,500 miles] separate Buenos Aires, Israel and the Knesset in Jerusalem. This great distance is compensated for by the closeness of our hearts."
Milei first announced his intention to move the embassy in Herzliya, north of Tel Aviv, during his first state visit to Israel in February 2024.
"In 2026 we will make effective the move of our embassy to the city of West Jerusalem," he said Wednesday.
Ohana called the embassy move an "historic moment in the history of Israel-Argentina relations."
Jerusalem is a religious city and Tel Aviv is secular.
Argentina also doesn't have a consulate in Jerusalem, which is 42 miles east of Tel Aviv. There are about 90 foreign embassies in Tel Aviv and six in Jerusalem: United States, Guatemala, Honduras, Kosovo and Papa New Guinea. During President Donald Trump's first presidency, he ordered the U.S. embassy to move Tel Aviv, and it became official on May 14, 2018.
Milei began is(sic) speech describing the current political atmosphere globally: "cancer" of spreading antisemitism and "corruption" of Western values, noting the left has lost its moral compass and was "siding with Hamas."
"Argentina will not stand on the sidelines," he said in noting it will "raise its voice in defense of fellow human beings."
Lapid commended Milei for being "truly right wing" due to his slashing government spending, lowering inflation and investing in the middle class. Lapid said his current government was doing the opposite.
Milei said that, though Israel is in a hostile region, the nation is a bastion of democracy. He counted the number of "miracles" -- the formation of the state, its victory in the war of independence, its emergence as a global technological leader and economic reforms of the 1980s during hyperinflation.
"Unfortunately, I do not have the good fortune of visiting Israel during peaceful times," Milei said at the Knesset. "On October 7, the people of Israel were victims of a barbaric attack. We thought we had finally ended such barbarism, but the tragedy woke us from that dream."
He noted four Argentine nationals remain in Hamas captivity and vowed Argentina would continue to pursue their release.
Milei met with survivors of Hamas captivity and families of Argentine hostages.
Netanyahu said: In the face of this unprecedented and brutal aggression, you spoke with absolute clarity. We stand with you in the battle against the forces of darkness.
"You have taken a stand for truth against falsehood, understanding that this is a war of unparalleled justice -- an all-out battle against barbarism that threatens the entire world," he added.
Netanyahu described Argentina's role in Jewish history, calling the nation a refuge for Jews fleeing persecution in the 19th century.
Milei said his country's "economic miracle" is occurring because of the opposition to "unnecessary" government spending and carrying out fiscal and monetary reforms.
He is scheduled to conclude his visit on Thursday with a return to the Western Wall.
During a meeting between Milei and Netanyahu on Tuesday, they spoke about plans for a direct flight between Buenos Aires and Tel Aviv by the Israeli carrier El Al. It would be the first flight between those cities since the capture of Nazi war criminal Adolf Eichmann in 1960.
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