‘US will bear legal responsibility’: Iran warns Trump admin over potential Israeli strike on nuclear sites

Iran has warned that it will hold the United States accountable for any Israeli strike on its nuclear facilities, issuing the threat on the eve of a new round of nuclear negotiations between Tehran and Washington.

The warning came after a CNN report on Tuesday, citing unnamed US officials, claimed that Israel is preparing to target Iranian nuclear sites despite the ongoing diplomatic talks.

“We believe that in the event of any attack on the nuclear facilities of the Islamic Republic of Iran by the Zionist regime, the US government will also be involved and bear legal responsibility,” AFP quoted Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi as saying in a letter to the United Nations published on Thursday.

“Iran strongly warns against any adventurism by the Zionist regime and will respond decisively to any threat or unlawful act by this regime,” Araghchi added.

The nuclear talks, which began on April 12, mark the highest-level engagement between the US and Iran since Washington exited the 2015 nuclear deal under President Trump in 2018.

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The US delegation is set to include Trump ally Steve Witkoff and State Department policy chief Michael Anton, who has handled technical aspects, AFP reported, citing a source.

A major sticking point remains uranium enrichment. While the 2015 deal allowed low-level enrichment for civilian use, Iran is now enriching uranium to 60% — well above the 3.67% cap, but still short of weapons-grade 90%.

Trump, who has pledged to secure a stronger deal than the one brokered under Obama, said during a visit to Qatar last week that he believed Iran had accepted key terms and that his diplomatic approach would prevent military conflict.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, testifying before Congress on Wednesday, reaffirmed that the Trump administration remains firm on its demand for zero uranium enrichment by Iran.

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“Iran cannot have an enrichment capability, because that ultimately makes them a threshold nuclear power,” Rubio was quoted as saying.

Iran is looking for relief from sweeping sanctions imposed in 2018 by Trump, which include penalties on all countries to prevent them from purchasing Iran’s key export of petrol.

Rubio, questioned by a lawmaker, suggested that the United States would maintain sanctions over Iran’s development of ballistic missiles, a topic that was not addressed explicitly under the 2015 agreement.

“There are sanctions related to terrorism, sanctions related to their ballistic missiles programme, and the like. Those sanctions, if they’re not part of the deal, they’ll remain in place,” he said.

Rubio did not comment on the CNN report, but said it was no secret that Israel has been studying military options.

Israel, Iran’s sworn enemy, has been threatening to use force against Iranian nuclear sites but has faced resistance from Trump.

On Thursday, Ali Mohammad Naini, the spokesman for Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, warned of a “devastating” response in case of an Israeli attack.

“If the delusional Zionist regime commits a foolish act and launches an attack, it will definitely receive a devastating and decisive response in its small and vulnerable geography,” ISNA news agency quoted Naini as saying.

Also on Thursday, the Iranian army’s ground forces unveiled three new drones, adding two reconnaissance and one kamikaze drone to to its arsenal, the official IRNA news agency reported.

With inputs from agencies