On Saturday, Iran named a suspect they are seeking in connection with an explosion at the Natanz nuclear site eight days ago.
“Reza Karimi, the perpetrator of this sabotage… has been identified” by Iran’s intelligence ministry, state TV said, adding that he had fled Iran after the incident.
“Necessary steps are underway for his arrest and return to the country through legal channels,” the report added.
The report alleged that Israel was behind the incident at the nuclear site. The report displayed a photograph of the suspected perpetrator on a red card that had “Interpol Wanted” written on it, listing his age as 43 adding that he was born in the nearby city of Kashan. The supposed Interpol “red notice” listed his travel history as including Spain, the United Arab Emirates, Kenya, Ethiopia, Qatar, Turkey, Uganda, Romania and another country that was illegible.
#Iran-ian state-controlled IRIB news agency publishes the “ID” of the person behind “Natanz nuclear facility sabotage”
Adds:
“Ministry of Intelligence has identified ‘Reza Karimi’, he fled the country before the sabotage” pic.twitter.com/mYtkOYGheZ— Aleph א (@no_itsmyturn) April 17, 2021
The report also displayed a photo of centrifuges, claiming that the facility for enriching uranium had returned to being fully operational.
Iran initially claimed the site suffered an electrical malfunction on April 11 but reports in Israeli and US media have claimed Natanz’s main and backup power lines were blown up by a 150-kilogram bomb that was smuggled into the plant and then detonated remotely. . The incident took place one day after a chain of 164 advanced IR-6 uranium enrichment centrifuges went online at the site.
