Satellites Suggest Iran Hid Atomic Activities Amid Nuclear Deal Talks

Recently released satellite images of Iran’s top-secret military complex suggest that the Islamic Republic was engaged in efforts to hide its atomic program-related work from the past while nuclear deal negotiations were ongoing.

The satellite photos of Iran’s top-secret Parchin military site, located an estimated 20 miles southeast of Tehran, were obtained by private intelligence firm Stratfor.

Stratfor analyst Sim Tack spoke to the Daily Beast about the series of images taken from space.

“We’re not saying they’re cheating on the nuclear deal,” he said, adding, “The images show Iran was going through the motions to hide what it’s done before, and it is still … developing facilities that the IAEA [International Atomic Energy Agency] may or may not have access to.”

Tack reportedly indicated that “the progression of satellite images tracking construction at Parchin from 2012 to 2015 show how Iran’s leaders apparently worked to keep regime hardliners happy by moving forward with weapons programs, even as the leadership worked to erase signs of an illegal nuclear weapons program.”

He described the construction of a tunnel entrance to the military complex as new information. Stratfor says the images reveal that Iran is digging a tunnel into a heavily guarded mountain complex inside the Parchin facility.

“A 2014 image Stratfor did not release showed construction equipment outside tunnel entrance,” reports the Daily Beast, adding, “The mysterious subterranean complex could be part of Iran’s ballistic missile program that triggered new U.S. sanctions in January, even as the nuclear sanctions were being lifted.”

“They were still going forward with that construction during the talks,” said Tack.

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