TEHRAN: Iranian Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi on Thursday said he would join key European counterparts in Geneva, Switzerland, for talks on Tehran’s nuclear programme.
“We will meet with the European delegation in Geneva on Friday,” Araghchi said in a statement carried by state news agency IRNA.
The Iranian top diplomat will be meeting with the foreign ministers of France, Germany, and Britain and the EU’s top diplomat.
Meanwhile, Israel on Thursday claimed to strike Iran’s nuclear facilities as Iranian missiles struck several sites in Israel.
Iran slams IAEA
Iranian foreign ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei has criticised UN nuclear watchdog chief Rafael Grossi and accused the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) of being a partner to an “unjust war of aggression” initiated by Israel.
In a post on X, Baghaei responded to an interview with CNN in which Grossi said there was no evidence of a systematic Iranian effort to develop nuclear weapons.
“This is too late, Mr. Grossi,” Baghaei wrote, adding that an IAEA resolution declaring Iran in breach of its obligations under the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty had been used as a pretext for Israel to strike Iran.
“Misleading narratives have dire consequences, Mr. Grossi, and demand accountability. You betrayed the non-proliferation regime; You’ve made IAEA a partner to this unjust war of aggression,” he wrote.
Iran has stated that the primary target of the missile strike that impacted the Soroka Hospital in southern Israel was an Israeli military and intelligence base, not the medical facility itself.
“The main target of the attack was the Israeli Army Command and Intelligence Base (IDF C4I) and the Army Intelligence Camp in Gav-Yam Technology Park, located in the vicinity of the Soroka Hospital,” state news agency IRNA said.
It said the hospital was “exposed only to the blast wave” and that the “direct and precise target” was the military facility.
Meanwhile, Israel’s defence minister has said Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei will be “held accountable” for a missile strike on an Israeli hospital and added that he has ordered the army to “intensify strikes” on the Islamic Republic.
Earlier today, Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping held a phone call during which both leaders condemned Israel for its strikes on Iran and agreed de-escalation was needed, the Kremlin said.
Both men “strongly condemn Israel’s actions, which violate the UN Charter and other norms of international law,” Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov told reporters.
