Exiles say Iran uses tunnels to hide
atomic work
December 20, 2005
LONDON (Reuters) - An Iranian exile group on Tuesday called on the
U.N.'s atomic watchdog to inspect an extensive network of tunnels
which it says the Islamic Republic has built to conceal a
clandestine nuclear weapons programme.
The National Council of Resistance of Iran, which first made
allegations of the tunnels in September, said their sources in Iran
had evidence of underground complexes in 14 locations, near Tehran,
Isfahan, Qom and other cities.
"These have been built by military agencies and their front
companies," said Hossein Abedini, a member of the foreign affairs
committee of the NCRI at a news conference.
"The purpose of the tunnels is to conceal parts of the Tehran
regime's atomic and missile programmes," he said, adding they were
used for hiding research centres, workshops, nuclear equipment and
nuclear and missile command and control centres.
He said the NCRI, which has previously reported accurately about
hidden atomic facilities in Iran, had sent the Vienna-based
International Atomic Energy Agency its latest information and urged
the body to inspect the tunnels.
"Today we call on the International Atomic Energy Agency to
immediately and urgently act," said Abedini.
No one was immediately available at the IAEA to comment.
The NCRI is a coalition of exiled opposition groups that seeks to
overthrow Iran's clerical rulers and is listed by the United States
as a terrorist organization.
The allegations come a day before Britain, France and Germany meet
Iranian officials to discuss the possibility of restarting
negotiations on Iran's disputed nuclear programme.
Almost two years of talks collapsed earlier this year when Iran
said it would restart some sensitive nuclear activity. The West
suspects Iran of developing atomic weapons but Tehran argues it
needs nuclear technology to generate electricity.
Abedini gave more details about the tunnels than previously
available and named companies and engineers involved.
He said a complex of tunnels at Parchin, east of Tehran, was used
for work on laser techniques for uranium enrichment.
Another tunnel system in Khojeer, southeast of Tehran, was used to
assemble ballistic missiles and was 1 km (0.6 miles) long and 12
metres (yards) wide.
The NCRI believes Iran could develop an
atomic bomb in "a couple of years."