Friday, June 10, 2011

Iran Admits to Secret Enrichment Facility at Fordo

Now that Iran is well on the road to becoming another member of the Middle East’s nuclear club, it seems Ahmadinejad believes that it is too late for anyone to be able to stop his “train with no brakes.” Just the day after Ahmadinejad’s train statement Iran’s Vice President, Fereydoon Abbasi Davani, said that Iran’s uranium that had already been enriched to 20 percent will now be transferred from Natanz to Fordo for further enrichment to weapons grade uranium of 90 percent. Fordo is a well-guarded underground facility situated near the military installations surrounding the holy city of Qom and protected by air defense missile batteries. It was burrowed deep into the side of a mountain. These features make the facility all but invulnerable to an American or Israel air strike unless special weapons are used. This latest announcement was not only meant to validate Iran’s nuclear accomplishments but also to focus on another of US President Obama’s Middle East failures. In Pittsburgh on Sept. 25, 2009, Obama appeared before the world media, flanked by the British prime minister of the day, George Brown, and French President Nicolas Sarkozy, to reveal the existence of the surreptitious Iranian enrichment facility at Fordo. He gave Tehran two weeks to open up the facility to full International Atomic Energy Agency inspection and disclose the plans for the site, failing which Washington, London and Paris would pursue joint action against the Islamic Republic. Obama has yet to pursue any action against Iran other than some toothless sanctions. Iran has continued its nuclear development right under the noses of the US and the UN making fools of Western leaders, especially Obama, and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) inspectors. Three years ago, Obama accused Tehran of concealment and deceit. Today, the Iranians no longer bother to conceal the true function of the Fordo facility – or even that 3,000 advanced centrifuges will be working there when the plant reaches full capacity. This of course increases the threat to Israel. Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu is again placed into the position of dealing with this problem earlier than hoped. In the past month or so, there has been some important debate in Israeli political and media circles about a strike on the Islamic Republic. However, on the whole it has been remarkably muted compared to the bluster of, say, a year ago. In the past few months, ostensibly in the wake of the so-called Arab Spring, discussion of a war with Iran has been relegated to the back-burner. The logic of waiting to see what happens prevailed, and more pressing problems, such as Egypt’s instability and the Palestinian intention to declare statehood this year, took center stage in Israel. From a more global perspective, tensions involving Iran are most clearly now at a new all-time high. Recent reports from Russian sources have said that the Kremlin has been pulling out significant numbers of nuclear technicians and other specialists from Iran. This is a good indication that Russia anticipates a military attack in the near future. It is hard to imagine that, should hostilities break out, the US would be able to stay out of the fray for long. However, President Obama has shown his colors by favoring the Shiites over the Sunnis in the on-going confrontation between Iran and Saudi Arabia. He has also said in the past he would not go to war to help Israel. So Israel must assume that if a strike against Iran is necessary they must plan to go it alone. This summer is the time to watch, both because it has historically been the season of war in the Middle East, and because Iran may soon reach the nuclear point of no-return.


The Fordo installation as recorded in 2009
Enrichment transfer to Fordo: Iran’s slap in the face for Obama, IAEA and Israel
DEBKAfile Special Report June 8, 2011
Iran has struck another blow in its nuclear offensive against the world. Tuesday, June 7, President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad termed Iran’s nuclear program “a train with no brakes or reverse gear” after Tehran announced the deployment of submarines in the Red Sea. Wednesday, Iran’s vice president and atomic chief, Fereydoon Abbasi Davani, said Iran’s 20-percent uranium enrichment work would be transferred from Natanz to Fordo this summer. Purification capacity would be tripled, he said, by improved centrifuges.
Debkafile‘s military sources report that this move further shortens Iran’s road to weapons grade uranium of 90 percent.
Last November, Abbasi Davani escaped an attempt of his life in northern Tehran, for which Iran held Israel responsible.
Fordo is a well-guarded underground facility situated near the military installations surrounding the holy city of Qom and protected by air defense missile batteries. It was burrowed deep into the side of a mountain. These features make the facility all but invulnerable to an American or Israel air strike.
The very name Fordo is a red flag for US President Barack Obama.
In Pittsburgh on Sept. 25, 2009, Obama appeared before the world media, flanked by the British prime minister of the day, George Brown, and French President Nicolas Sarkozy, to reveal the existence of the surreptitious Iranian enrichment facility at Fordo. He gave Tehran two weeks to open up the facility to full International Atomic Energy Agency inspectionand disclose the plans for the site, failing which Washington, London and Paris would pursue joint action against the Islamic Republic.
The answer Iran gave was that the US president’s allegations were baseless and the nuclear watchdog inspectors were welcome.
The UN inspectors arrived at the Fordo subterranean facility a month later and returned to Vienna to report they found nothing – neither centrifuges for enrichment nor nuclear materials. Two more UN inspections produced the same result.
Iran’s announcement Wednesday demonstrates that in 2009, it made a fool of Western leaders, especially President Obama, and tricked the international atomic agency inspectors.  Enrichment uranium to 20 percent meanwhile takes Iran another big step towards attaining the fuel for a nuclear weapon.
Three years ago, Obama accused Tehran of concealment and deceit. Today, the Iranians no longer bother to conceal the true function of the Fordo facility – or even that 3,000 advanced centrifuges will be working there when the plant reaches full capacity.
Iran’s rulers feel they can be afford to be barefaced about their activities because they are certain that neither the US nor Israel with take military action against the Fordo plant. They do not find the condemnation of world powers or the nuclear watchdog too burdensome to live with.

Article by Tom  Chapman, source: http://ceiprophecy.com/2011/06/iran-admits-to-secret-enrichment-facility-at-fordo/
About Tom Chapman
Tom Chapman is a retired Army officer, teacher, computer manager, and pilot. He has been a student of Biblical Prophecy for over 30 years. He not only has a passion for the prophetic but believes it is an integral part in the maturing process of a believer. The Bible has much to say about the times in which we live and every believer needs to understand the prophetic season of "the last days". To understand the present we also need to understand the future as it is foretold in scripture. Proverbs 29:18a tells us: "Where there is no revelation (prophetic vision), the people cast off restraint". The time is short and we must be ready (holy and righteous) to meet Jesus when He returns to claim His own.

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