The National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI) announced in Paris on 3 February 2005 that Iran had acquired the materials and technical knowledge needed to build a neutron initiator, a critical component in an atomic bomb. Citing confidential sources within Iran's nuclear program, the group said Tehran had obtained polonium-210 and beryllium, and had developed the capability to manufacture a neutron generator.
The NCRI said Iran secretly imported 20 kilograms of beryllium in 2004 through a front company, enough to construct initiators for roughly a dozen nuclear devices. Polonium-210 was reportedly being produced domestically through bismuth irradiation. The group also presented maps of a military facility called Lavizan II, located about 25 kilometers northwest of Tehran, allegedly used for beryllium production and uranium enrichment via laser technology.
NCRI foreign affairs chairman Mohammad Mohaddessin said all findings had been shared with the IAEA and relevant governments. He accused Tehran of concealing these activities from international inspectors.
The NCRI is the political arm of the People's Mujahedeen (PMOI), designated a terrorist organization by both the US and the European Union. Iran had agreed in November 2004 to suspend uranium enrichment after EU negotiations, maintaining its nuclear program serves civilian purposes only.
Historical summary. TurkishPress restated this AFP wire report, first published in February 2005, in its own words.