Iran says it foiled sabotage at nuclear facility

Official says attempt to damage heavy water reactor facility neutralized before any damage done

By AP and ToI Staff 15 March 2014, 3:50 pm 6

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An International Atomic Energy Agency inspector disconnects the connections between the twin cascades for 20% uranium production at Natanz nuclear power plant south of Tehran on January, 20, 2014 (Kazem Ghane/IRNA/AFP)

TEHRAN, Iran — A senior Iranian official says authorities detected sabotage at the country’s heavy water reactor facility and neutralized it before any damage was done.

The semi-official Fars news agency quoted Asghar Zarean, a senior official in charge of nuclear security at the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran, as saying Saturday that Iran’s intelligence agencies were instrumental in uncovering the plot. He didn’t provide further details.

Iran’s Natanz uranium enrichment facility was the target of the so-called Stuxnet virus in 2010 that 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 program.

Zarean said Iranian security forces had defused several enemy plots and acts of sabotage, notably at nuclear facilities, in recent months. “Some cases of acts of sabotage in the industrial sector have been identified and foiled in the last few months through cooperation between the intelligence ministry and the security bodies,” Zarean said, according to Fars.