Iranian VP accuses Israel of planting explosives in centrifuges
Mohammad Javad Zarif blamed the sanctions on his country for allegedly facilitating Israel, and linked the issue to the Israeli operations in Lebanon
Iran's Vice President Mohammad Javad Zarif claimed on Wednesday that Israel had hidden explosives in centrifuges his country had purchased for its nuclear program.
He also argued that "instead of being able to order equipment directly from the manufacturer, sanctions force us to rely on many intermediaries for such purchases."
"If the Zionist regime infiltrates even one of those mediators, they can do everything and plant whatever they want, and that's exactly what happened," added Zarif. "In fact, it's part of the damage caused to us by the sanctions. In addition to financial losses, we also have significant security risks."
He linked the alleged sabotage to Israel's pager operation in Lebanon, where Israel concealed explosives in the communication devices of thousands of Hezbollah terrorists.
"The issue with the beepers in Lebanon turned out to be a multi-year and carefully planned process by the Zionists," he said.