Dubious proof?! Iran has been blatantly pursuing nuclear weapons for decades - and the west (along with much of the rest of the world and the middle east) has been working to counter it the whole time.

Remember that in the middle east, Iran is considered a dire enemy.

If it wanted nuclear weapons, it would just buy some from Pakistan.

Their actions do not follow the conclusion you state.

What is clear now though to any Iranian is that they should get nuclear weapons asap. Diplomacy is just a tool used by the west to string you along while they get ready to bomb you

It is very likely false that Iran had nuclear weapons, or was within weeks of having them. This was also the position of US intelligence, until they were forced by higher-ups to speak different words.

Of course, Iran very much wanted the ability to make a nuke, and they probably could have had one ready in 1 or 2 years. But the proof put forward in defense of this strike is claiming Iran was weeks away from nukes. That proof is dubious.

(Also interesting to consider how US retreat from the nuclear deal under Trump 1 has affected and shaped the current situation)

> Remember that in the middle east, Iran is considered a dire enemy.

It's a dire enemy because they're Shia and the rest (with some exception in Eastern Saudi Arabia) are Sunni.

Yes, dubious proof. A quick Google search can reveal this claim has been bs for decades, consistently evaluated by the US’ own intelligence, up until a day ago [0]

But that doesn’t matter anymore

0. https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c056zqn6vvyo

No it hasn't, you don't sit on 60%-enriched Uranium for 3 years (they announced it back in 2022!) if you plan to make a bomb.

IAEA also confirmed that Iran didn't have ongoing military nuclear project.

The reason why they raised their enrichment level was to raise their bargaining power to force the US to come back to the negotiation table in an attempt to get rid of the sanctions.

They almost succeeded since US and Iran were supposed to meet last Sunday, but that was not taking Israel into account, which killed the chief negotiator and convinced Trump to bomb Iran just 3 days in the “two weeks” negotiation deadline he had set earlier this week.