Americas
US Considering Use Of Special Forces To Seize Iran’s Enriched Uranium – Axios
Asked if the ground forces would be deployed to secure nuclear material, Trump said, “At some point maybe we will. We haven’t gone after it. We wouldn’t do it now. Maybe we will do it later.”
The United States and Israel have discussed sending special forces into Iran to seize its highly enriched uranium stockpiles at a later stage of the war, Axios reported citing four sources with knowledge of the discussions.
The Trump administration has discussed two options: removing the entire material from Iran or bringing in nuclear experts to dilute it on-site, the report said citing a US official.
Speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One, Trump did not rule out the use of ground forces against Iran but said that would happen only “for a very good reason.”
Asked if the ground forces would be deployed to secure nuclear material, Trump said, “At some point maybe we will. We haven’t gone after it. We wouldn’t do it now. Maybe we will do it later.”
There has also been discussion of seizing Iran’s Kharg Island in the Persian Gulf which is responsible for almost 90% of Iran’s crude oil exports, Axios reported citing Trump administration officials.
According to the report, the uranium stockpile was buried under rubble after American attacks on the facility, but intelligence officials believe it may still be reachable.
The New York Times wrote that the Iranian government can currently reach the material through a very narrow access point, though it remains unclear how quickly the uranium could be moved.
The uranium is stored in gas form and kept inside specialized canisters, the report said.
US officials said American intelligence agencies are closely monitoring the Isfahan nuclear site and maintain continuous surveillance of the area.
They said the United States has a high level of confidence it would be able to detect — and respond to — any attempt by Iran or other actors to remove the uranium from the facility.
He said Iranian officials took a hard line in previous talks, insisting they had an “inalienable right to enrich” uranium.
“They bragged about having, 60% enriched fuel, enough for eleven bombs. They told me and Jared [Kushner], ‘We’re not gonna give you diplomatically what you couldn’t take militarily’,” Witkoff told reporters as he stood next to President Donald Trump aboard Air Force One.
“I think they’re gonna need a change of attitude… we have a lot of negotiating leverage, maybe maximum, but we’re not looking to settle. They’d like to settle. We’re not looking to settle.”
A residential building in the holy city of Qom was attacked by US-Israeli airstrikes early Sunday, deputy governor general of Qom province, home to the world’s biggest Shia seminary, told state media.
Hours earlier, photos and videos circulating on social media showed a similar attack on a residential building in Shahr-e Rey, southern Tehran, in what seems to be another attempt at targeted killing.
The Israeli military said on Saturday it struck several fuel storage complexes in Tehran which it said were used by Iran’s military forces.
The IDF said Iran’s military makes “direct and frequent use of these fuel tanks to operate military infrastructure.”
Through them, it said, the Islamic Republic distributes fuel to various consumers, including military entities in Iran.
Saudi Arabia has warned Iran that continued attacks on the kingdom and its energy sector could push Riyadh to respond in kind, Reuters reported on Saturday citing four sources familiar with the matter.
The message was conveyed before Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian’s televised speech in which he apologized to Arab neighbors for the Iranian attacks, saying he had instructed the country’s armed forces to stop hitting regional countres.
However, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain as well as the Iraqi Kurdistan were attacked shortly after Pezeshkian’s speech.
Kenya Insights allows guest blogging, if you want to be published on Kenya’s most authoritative and accurate blog, have an expose, news TIPS, story angles, human interest stories, drop us an email on [email protected] or via Telegram
The Debt They Would Not Pay: How Standard Group Ducked Sh50 Million In Regulatory Fee For Years, Then Called It A Witch-Hunt
Millions Angry With Trump Expected To Fill American Streets
City Lawyer Kimani Wachira Caught Up In Bribery Web Fights Claims
Men Linked to Akasha Drug Dynasty Charged With Death Threats and Assault at Nairobi Nightclub
You Will Pay: KRA To Monitor M-Pesa Transactions Of ‘Nil-Returns’ Filers
The Diplomat, the Mine Giant, and the Conservancy: Why Kenyans Are Questioning Britain’s Hand in Lewa
THE HANDSHAKE THAT BECAME A NOOSE: How Tuju’s Alleged Intimate Access to EADB’s Yeda Apopo Produced a Sh294 Million Deal With No Written Contract, and Why That Trust Destroyed an Empire
Israel’s Military At Risk Of Collapse, Chief Warns
Trump Signature To Appear On US Currency, Ending 165-Year Tradition
Peter Maina Karimi Officially Appointed Head Of Kenya’s Gambling Regulator
Kenya Strips Dutch Climate Body of Diplomatic Immunity Amid Donor Fraud Scandal and Allegations of Executive Capture
How Little-Known Pesa Print, Linked to State House Tycoons, Won NTSA Tender Worth Sh42 Billion in Traffic Fines
Tuju Forcefully Removed From His Karen Property With Masked Officers In Unmarked Vehicles In Early Morning Raid
Ex-Inchcape Kenya CEO Sanjiv Shah Charged With Bank Fraud
Nowhere To Hide: Govt Begins Tracing Hustler Fund Defaulters Using National IDs To Recover Unpaid Sh12 Billion
Named: Havi Says Mutava Confessed He Was Collecting The Bribe For Lady Justice Josephine Mongare, So Why Is JSC Still Silence?
The Man With The Golden Pen: How NLC’s Joel Ombati Is Accused Of Masterminding Kenya’s Biggest Infrastructure Land Heist
Waweru’s Bank Pockets Sh1.16 Billion from KPC IPO While Ordinary Kenyans Fled the Sale
‘They Will Eat You Alive’: Retired Teacher Warns Against Bashy African Credit as Sh500,000 Loan Spirals Into Sh1.5 Million Fight
The New Master of the Nation: How a Tanzanian Billionaire With a President in His Pocket Just Bought Kenya’s Most Powerful Press
-
Business2 weeks ago‘They Will Eat You Alive’: Retired Teacher Warns Against Bashy African Credit as Sh500,000 Loan Spirals Into Sh1.5 Million Fight
-
Investigations1 week agoTHE RUTO HAND IN TUJU’S FALL: How a President-Linked Petroleum Baron Walked Away With Sh3.5 Billion Karen Land for Sh450 Million
-
Business5 days agoBig Shame: EY and PwC Found Guilty of Fraud and Corruption in Kenya as World Bank Bans Lay Bare Scandal Inside the Global Audit Elite
-
Investigations2 weeks agoInvestigations Reveal The Depth Of Rot In City Hall’s Garbage Collection Tender To Corrupt Ghanaian Firm
-
Business1 day agoTHE HANDSHAKE THAT BECAME A NOOSE: How Tuju’s Alleged Intimate Access to EADB’s Yeda Apopo Produced a Sh294 Million Deal With No Written Contract, and Why That Trust Destroyed an Empire
-
Investigations2 weeks agoRevealed: How Kibaki and His Men Stole Raila’s Victory in the 2007 Election
-
Business2 weeks agoCyber Attack: Inside the USD4 Million Equity Bank Heist in Rwanda
-
Business2 weeks agoRegulator Finds GT Bank Kenya Guilty of Unfair Loan Terms After Throwing Longtime Customer Under the Bus