Iran’s parliament voted on Wednesday to suspend co-operation with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) following the bombing of three Iranian nuclear sites by Israel and the US.
The Bill must be approved by Iran’s unelected Guardian Council to become law. It stipulates that any future inspection by the UN nuclear watchdog would need approval from the Supreme National Security Council.
In advance of the vote, speaker Mohammed Bagher Qalibaf criticised the IAEA, saying it “refused to even pretend to condemn the attack on Iran’s nuclear facilities”.
Iran’s atomic energy agency will now boycott the Vienna-based IAEA and Iran’s “peaceful nuclear programme will move ahead at a faster pace”, he said.
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The legislation bans IAEA monitoring cameras, inspections, and entry visas for agency officials, including director Rafael Grossi.
Iran will no longer provide reports on nuclear activities to the IAEA. It has said co-operation will be denied until Iran’s national sovereignty and territorial integrity are respected, and security is guaranteed for nuclear sites and scientists, 14 of whom were assassinated by Israel during its 12-day war on Iran.
However, deputy head of the parliament’s national security commission, Mahmoud Nabavian, said Iran will remain committed to the 1970 Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty.
The IAEA said on Tuesday that its inspectors – who have remained in Iran – will “return to work as soon as possible” to nuclear sites to “check on inventories of nuclear material – including more than 400kg of uranium enriched to 60 per cent” which may have been hidden before Israel’s attacks began.
Mr Grossi said his priority was ensuring international inspectors could return to Iran’s nuclear sites, dismissing what he called the “hourglass approach” of trying to assess the damage in terms of months it would take Iran to rebuild.
“In any case, the technological knowledge is there and the industrial capacity is there. That, no one can deny. So we need to work together with them,” he said.
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As Iran planned state funerals for senior military commanders among the 610 Iranians killed by Israel, three men were hanged for spying for Israel and plotting assassinations of Iran’s leading figures.
US envoy Steve Witkoff told Fox News that the US and Iran are holding direct and mediated talks about returning to nuclear negotiations. “It’s time for us to sit down with the Iranians and get to a comprehensive peace deal, and I’m very confident that we’re going to achieve [this].” However, Iranian foreign ministry spokesman Easmaeil Baghaei told Al-Jazeera that Iran is focusing on its domestic situation rather than talks with the US, as there is little trust in Washington.
Tehran residents who had fled the capital began returning home on Wednesday. Businesses and shops reopened or texted customers to say services have resumed, according to the Financial Times. Traffic returned to war-deserted streets.
Iranians crossing the borders from Turkey and Armenia expressed confusion and hope. Although welcoming the ceasefire, some feared it could be “just a pause”.
On Tuesday night, mass “victory” celebrations erupted in cities across Iran and Iraq. Iran reopened its air space after 12 days of closure and travel chaos in regional hubs. – Additional reporting: Reuters
