From: Ad 

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/6570167.stm

"Iran has assembled 1,300 centrifuges at its Natanz nuclear plant and
has begun the process of enriching uranium, the UN nuclear watchdog has
confirmed.

The International Atomic Energy Agency said eight cascades of centrifuges,
the machines that spin uranium gas into enriched material, were now
operating.

Earlier this month Iran's president said Natanz was ready to enrich uranium
on an industrial-scale.

The West suspects Iran of seeking atomic weapons, a charge Iran denies.

Tehran insists its nuclear programme is for peaceful purposes only.

The confidential three-paragraph letter was written by the deputy director
general of the IAEA, Olli Heinonen.

It confirmed the findings of a team of IAEA inspectors who conducted a
routine "design information verification" mission to Natanz in
the past week.

Those inspectors were informed that Iran was now operating 1,312
centrifuges at Natanz, the letter said.

An undefined quantity of uranium gas was being fed into the centrifuges,
the letter added.

The disclosure of the inspectors' findings comes after the head of the
IAEA, Mohammed ElBaradei, downplayed Iran's claim that it was beginning
industrial-scale production.

Speaking in Saudi Arabia last week, Mr ElBaradei said Iran would need
thousands of centrifuges, but had only hundreds operating at present.
"

What's impressive is the speed with which they're churning out the devices
& hooking them up. One wonders were the Iranians to cap the numbers at
Natanz, whether the production would stop or whether the supply would be
diverted to an as yet unknown facility possibly run by a less civilian
operation (& away from "IAEA inspection".


Adam

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