TEHRAN— In his virtual weekly press briefing on Monday, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Saeed Khatibzadeh talked about the Natanz incident, calling it “a crime against humanity.”

“These days it is heard that they confirm that the Zionist regime was behind this story. Of course, I am glad that there was no human or environmental damage. But this is a crime against humanity,” Khatibzadeh said.

He said the Zionist regime had repeatedly threatened to target the Iranian nuclear sites.

“If the goal was to weaken Iran's power, it would not be so. All decommissioned centrifuges are IR1 and will be replaced with new centrifuges. They will definitely not achieve this goal. With this action, the occupying regime tried to take revenge on the Iranian people who are filled with patience and wisdom,” Khatibzadeh stated.

He warned, “Iran's response will be revenge against the Zionist regime in its place and time.”

The Foreign Ministry spokesman called the Natanz incident “nuclear terrorism” and ensured everyone that the Foreign Ministry is pursuing this action in a legal way.

“What happened in Natanz was nuclear terrorism in the territory of the Islamic Republic of Iran ... Iran reserves its right to respond and defend itself legitimately under Article 51 of the UN Charter. Our New York office is pursuing this action,” he explained.

“Natanz's answer is revenge against Israel, and Israel cannot pay from the pockets of the Iranian people. The Zionist regime has taken some actions and made some leaks public,” Khatibzadeh continued.

He also called it “too early” to estimate the degree of damage to the Natanz site.

“The amount of damage should be done by testing all the centrifuges and of course replacing them with advanced centrifuges. The exact amount of damage must be announced by the Atomic Energy Organization (of Iran) itself. It is too early now and they are examining each and every centrifuge.”

He called for action by the IAEA and said, “The IAEA and other international authorities must do their job, not just condemn, but ensure that such things do not happen again ... We do not base our path on the statements and actions of the Zionist regime.”

SA/PA