Iran Cuts Off IAEA Contact, Escalating Nuclear Dispute

Iran’s nuclear-safety regulators have stopped answering telephone calls from the International Atomic Energy Agency, according to two officials cited by Bloomberg on 1 July. The step comes less than a week after Tehran formally halted on-site inspections, eliminating the UN watchdog’s real-time visibility into the Islamic Republic’s atomic programme.

The breakdown in communications deepens a confrontation that intensified after Israeli and US strikes on Iranian nuclear sites in mid-June. Parliament has since voted to suspend cooperation with the IAEA, and President Masoud Pezeshkian has rejected Director-General Rafael Grossi’s request to visit damaged facilities…