US attack could drive Iran towards nuclear weapons – Mapungubwe Institute for Strategic Reflection
The United States attacked several key nuclear sites in Iran over the weekend.
Unused protective gear for protests sits at the feet of a demonstrator displaying an inverted US flag at a ‘No Mar War in the Middle East’ protest against the US strikes on Iran outside City Hall in downtown Los Angeles on 22 June 2025. Picture: AFP
702’s Bongani Bingwa speaks with Na’eem Jeenah, Senior Researcher at the Mapungubwe Institute for Strategic Reflection (MISTRA).
Listen below:
The United States has joined the war between Israel and Iran, dropping 13,000 kg bunker busters on the mountains above the Fordow nuclear facility.
This bombing was the first direct aggression by the US on Iran since the founding of the Islamic Republic in 1979.
The US justified the attack, saying Iran was in the process of building a nuclear weapon; however, the International Atomic Energy Agency found no evidence of this.
"Iran is the most inspected country in the world by the IAEA. If there was a weapons programme, they would know."
- Na’eem Jeenah, Senior Researcher - MISTRA
Jeenah adds that US intelligence also confirmed that there was no evidence that Iran was working on nuclear weapons.
He argues that this strike was US President Donald Trump caving in to pressure from Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Tehran says it will respond to the attack, though it is not known when or how.
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Jeenah says this attack could trigger Iran to start a nuclear weapons program.
“Certainly, they have been driven in that direction.”
- Na’eem Jeenah, Senior Researcher - MISTRA
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