UN atomic agency chief given security protection over Iran threat
UN atomic agency chief Rafael Grossi is receiving round-the-clock protection after Iran labelled him a spy and accused him of helping spark Israel’s 12-day war in June.
United Nations atomic agency chief Rafael Grossi has been receiving round-the-clock protection for weeks following a specific Iranian threat, according to people familiar with the matter.
The elite unit of Austria’s security services is protecting Mr Grossi after the country’s intelligence agency received information of a threat to the International Atomic Energy Agency chief from a third party, according to a person involved in the case. The IAEA is based in Vienna.
Iran accused Mr Grossi of helping spark Israel’s 12-day war in June, saying that his reports on Iran’s nuclear work were biased and spread baseless concerns about Iran’s nuclear activities. Top Iranian officials called for him to be put on trial and ousted from his job.
After the fighting ended, Mr Grossi pulled International Atomic Energy Agency inspectors out of Iran because of concerns for their safety in a discreet operation that saw them evacuated by road. That operation was done with Tehran’s consent.
In late June, according to officials, Mr Grossi – a veteran Argentine diplomat who is in the running to succeed António Guterres as United Nations secretary-general when that post becomes available next year – was given security protection by Austria’s Cobra special services unit.
The tactical force is deployed to counter the gravest threats, such as terror plots and to secure top-ranking individuals, including the Austrian chancellor. In instances of concrete threats against dignitaries, the unit deploys officers armed with sub machine guns and at least two bulletproof vehicles around the clock.
A person familiar with the matter said the Austrian authorities acted on intelligence outlining a specific threat to Mr Grossi coming from Iran-linked individuals. A second person said they had been told that the threat was believed to come from Iran and was being taken seriously by authorities.
“We can confirm that Austria provided a Cobra unit but we cannot confirm where the specific threat came from,” said Fredrik Dahl, an IAEA spokesman.
An Austrian Interior Ministry spokesman declined to comment. There was no comment from the Iranian mission in New York.
Among the sharpest public threats against Mr Grossi came from Ali Larijani, who is a senior aide to Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and the head of Iran’s National Security Council. “When the war ends, we are going to deal with Grossi,” he wrote in a post on X.
A senior Iranian judicial official said after the war that the IAEA chief could face a trial in absentia – an action that would severely complicate co-operation between Iran and the agency.
Iran’s hard-line semi-official Kayhan newspaper labelled Mr Grossi an Israeli spy and called for him to be detained and executed.
The relationship between Iran and Mr Grossi has often been tense since he became the agency’s top official in 2019. He had previously worked as a senior IAEA official before the 2015 nuclear deal, in another period of clashes between Tehran and the agency.
He won the top job on a promise to be firm on Iran’s escalating nuclear activities and had the backing of the first Trump administration.
Mr Grossi has tried to persuade Iran to limit its violations of the 2015 nuclear deal and has faced what IAEA officials call Iranian stonewalling of a six-year probe into undeclared nuclear material found in Iran. After the U.S. quit the agreement during President Trump’s first term, Iran broke almost all the limits on its nuclear work in the agreement, building up by June enough near weapons grade enriched uranium to fuel around 10 nuclear weapons.
Despite the strains, he maintains a relationship with Iranian officials and has been to Tehran several times to resolve IAEA concerns about Iran’s activities. He said on Tuesday that following his discussions with Iran, an initial team of inspectors had now returned to the country, although their access to nuclear sites still needs to be resolved.
After the start of Israel’s attacks on Iran in June, Mr Grossi and the agency were pinned as partly responsible by Iran. Iranian officials claimed that Mr Grossi was co-ordinating and acting on orders from Israel, accused IAEA inspectors of being spies and attacked Mr Grossi for what Iran said was promoting baseless claims that Iran’s nuclear activities were for military purposes.
Iran specifically cited a report on May 31 that Mr Grossi produced detailing the efforts the agency had made to get Iran to answer its questions about the undeclared Iranian nuclear material. The report detailed the areas where Iran’s lack of responses meant the agency couldn’t ensure that Tehran’s nuclear program was for entirely peaceful purposes.
The IAEA and its Western supporters pushed back against the claims. Mr Grossi has repeatedly said the IAEA is an independent agency that deals with all the nuclear issues it faces in a technical, neutral way.
The IAEA board ordered Mr Grossi to write the May report. The claims of Mr Grossi’s co-operation with Israel centred on a series of pictures of Mr Grossi meeting with a former Israeli representative at the agency.
Mr Grossi repeatedly condemned attacks on nuclear sites during the June conflict, saying they breached international law.
Mr Grossi has told people in recent days that the round-the-clock protection has transformed his normal life and that he has been told to take the threat very seriously, according to a person familiar with the conversation.
Dow Jones
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