Iran atomic agency says Israeli attack on nuclear sites ‘unlikely’

TEHRAN: Iran’s atomic energy agency said Wednesday an Israeli attack on key nuclear sites was “very unlikely” and the country would be able to “quickly compensate” for any potential damage.
“It is very unlikely to happen,” said the agency spokesman Behrouz Kamalvandi in a video interview with the Nournews agency.
“In the event of an attack on a key site: be sure it will not succeed,” he said.
“And if they (Israel) do such a stupid thing, it is very unlikely that they will cause serious damage to us and even if we assume that they can cause some damage, the country can quickly compensate for it,” he added.
His remarks came ahead of an expected Israeli response to Iran’s firing of around 200 missiles at Israel on October 1.
Tehran said it was a retaliation for the killing of Iran-aligned militant leaders in the region and a general in its Revolutionary Guards.
The missile barrage came after an Israeli air raid killed Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah and IRGC top general Abbas Nilforoushan in Beirut on September 27.
It also followed the killing of Palestinian group Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh on July 31 in Tehran in an attack widely blamed on Israel.
Israel has since vowed to retaliate, with Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant vowing that Israel’s response will be “deadly, precise and surprising.”
US President Joe Biden, whose government is Israel’s top arms supplier, has warned Israel against striking Iran’s nuclear or oil facilities.
The office of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that Israel — and not its top ally the United States — would decide how to strike back.
“We listen to the opinions of the United States, but we will make our final decisions based on our national interest,” it said Tuesday.
Iran has warned that any attack on its “infrastructure” would provoke an “even stronger response,” while Revolutionary Guards General Rassul Sanairad said an attack on nuclear or energy sites would cross a red line.