WANA (Apr 06) – Following a recent attack near the Bushehr Nuclear Power Plant, the head of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran, in an official letter to the Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), described the incident as a clear violation of international law and an act of war crime, calling for its explicit condemnation.

 

According to the Public Diplomacy and Information Center of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran, Mohammad Eslami, Vice President and head of the organization, lodged a formal protest in a letter to IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi over the recent attack by the United States and Israel on the vicinity of Unit 1 of the Bushehr Nuclear Power Plant.

 

The letter states that at approximately 8:30 a.m. local time on Saturday, April 4, 2026, the area surrounding the perimeter of Unit 1 (BNPP-1) was targeted by aerial and missile strikes. As a result of the blast wave and shrapnel, a building inside the site was damaged, one security personnel was killed, and several others were injured.

 

Eslami emphasized that this marks the fourth attack on the unit and warned that such actions could risk the release of radioactive materials from an operational reactor—posing potentially irreversible consequences for local populations, the environment, and even neighboring countries.

 

The letter further stressed that the attack constitutes a clear violation of the principle prohibiting strikes against safeguarded nuclear facilities in a state party to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT), and described it as a serious threat to the global non-proliferation regime.

 

It also noted that the military actions violate the Geneva Conventions and their related protocols, the IAEA Statute, the NPT, Iran’s Comprehensive Safeguards Agreement (INFCIRC/214), as well as resolutions of the IAEA Board of Governors and the agency’s safety standards.

 

In another part of the letter, Eslami criticized what he described as the inaction of the IAEA and its Director General, stating that merely expressing “deep concern” without explicitly condemning such acts is insufficient and may embolden the perpetrators to repeat similar attacks. The letter also referred to what it called politically biased public statements by the Director General, including a March 2026 interview with the U.S. network CBS.

 

In conclusion, Eslami called on the IAEA to adopt a firm stance, condemn the attacks against Iran’s safeguarded nuclear facilities, and fulfill its statutory responsibilities rather than remaining a passive observer. He also stressed that the Islamic Republic of Iran will take the necessary measures to defend its sovereign rights.