The findings suggest that the trajectory of Tehran’s nuclear program has remained broadly unchanged since last summer, despite months of conflict involving the United States and Israel. The war, launched on February 28, has largely targeted conventional military infrastructure, though Israel has struck several nuclear-related facilities.

Analysts say the unchanged timeline reflects both the limited focus of recent U.S. operations on nuclear sites and the continued existence of Iran’s stockpile of highly enriched uranium. Significantly delaying the program would likely require neutralizing or removing this material, they said.Earlier intelligence assessments had concluded that Iran could produce sufficient bomb-grade uranium within three to six months.

Following U.S. strikes last year on key facilities including Natanz, Fordow and Isfahan, that estimate was extended to roughly nine to twelve months.The International Atomic Energy Agency, the U.N. nuclear watchdog, has said Iran’s existing stockpile of highly enriched uranium could be sufficient for multiple weapons if further processed.

However, inspectors have been unable to verify the location of part of this material after oversight activities were disrupted.A fragile truce agreed on April 7 has paused large-scale hostilities, though tensions remain elevated. The conflict has also disrupted shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, a key route for global oil flows, contributing to wider energy market instability.

U.S. officials have consistently said preventing Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon remains a central objective. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has stated that Washington aims to achieve this through a combination of military pressure and negotiations.Experts say assessing the full impact of military operations on Iran’s nuclear capacity remains difficult.

While physical infrastructure has been damaged, knowledge and technical expertise may persist, and some nuclear material is believed to be stored in hardened underground sites beyond the reach of conventional strikes.Iran has long denied seeking nuclear weapons, maintaining that its program is for civilian purposes.

U.S. intelligence agencies and the IAEA assess that Tehran halted an organized weapons development effort in 2003, though concerns remain over its enrichment capabilities and potential breakout capacity.

Authorities said the damaged site at Isfahan University of Technology, one of Iran’s largest higher education institutions, would be converted into a permanent museum following strikes in March that hit the campus during the broader U.S.-Israeli military campaign against Iran.

“The current damaged site will be preserved as a war museum at the university to remain a document of the country’s scientific oppression in history,” Zafarollah Kalantari, head of the university, said on Saturday, according to the official IRNA news agency.

Kalantari said separate land had been allocated for the construction of a new academic building and the installation of advanced replacement equipment to restore the university’s research and teaching capacity.

Initial assessments estimated damage to the university’s buildings and facilities at around $11 million, he added.The university, located in the central city of Isfahan, was among dozens of educational institutions affected by the strikes launched during the war that began in late February and expanded across multiple fronts in the region.

Iranian officials have said more than 30 universities across the country were hit during the conflict, including campuses in Tehran, alongside residential neighborhoods and other civilian infrastructure.

The strikes formed part of a broader campaign by the United States and Israel targeting what Washington and Tel Aviv described as strategic military and nuclear-linked infrastructure, though Iranian authorities have repeatedly said civilian and academic institutions were also heavily affected.

The conflict triggered significant regional instability before a ceasefire took effect on April 8, temporarily halting direct hostilities but leaving diplomatic tensions and reconstruction challenges unresolved.

Iran has increasingly framed the damage to universities and research facilities as evidence of what it calls international attempts to suppress its scientific and technological development, using such sites as symbols of national resilience and resistance.

The decision to preserve the damaged section of Isfahan University reflects that broader political message, turning the remains of the strike into both a memorial and a state narrative of wartime loss.

The judiciary’s Mizan Online website said Erfan Kiani was hanged after the country’s Supreme Court upheld his death sentence, describing him as one of the “main operatives” involved in an operation allegedly directed by Mossad during unrest in the central province of Isfahan in January.

Authorities accused Kiani of participating in sabotage and violent attacks during the protests, which officials say were orchestrated by foreign-backed groups seeking to destabilize the country.

According to the judiciary, he was charged with “destruction of public and private property, arson, possession and use of Molotov cocktails, carrying a bladed weapon, blocking vehicle routes, attacking officers, and creating fear and panic among citizens.”Iranian officials said the activities formed part of a “mission assigned by Mossad,” Israel’s foreign intelligence agency, although no independent evidence was publicly presented.

The execution follows the hanging on Thursday of another man convicted of membership in a banned opposition organization, continuing a broader wave of capital punishment linked to unrest and national security charges.Iran has sharply increased executions since the outbreak of war with Israel and the United States on Feb. 28, when U.S.-Israeli strikes triggered a wider regional conflict and heightened internal security measures across the country.

Authorities have linked January’s protests to what they describe as coordinated interference by Israel, the United States, and exiled opposition groups, including the banned People’s Mujahedin Organization of Iran.Since March 19, Iranian authorities have executed at least nine men on charges connected to those protests, according to official statements.

Human rights organizations have repeatedly criticized Iran’s use of the death penalty, particularly in cases involving political dissent, espionage accusations, and national security prosecutions.According to groups including Amnesty International, Iran is the world’s second most prolific user of capital punishment after China.

Tehran maintains that such executions are necessary to preserve national security and deter what it calls foreign-sponsored subversion during wartime conditions.

The latest case is likely to draw renewed international scrutiny over Iran’s judicial process and its handling of security-related prosecutions amid escalating regional tensions.

The reality is that the Iranian society is like a barrel of gunpowder ‎that can explode at any moment with any rally

The City of Isfahan, the capital of the Isfahan Province, is located in ‎the center of Iran. In addition to its historical aspect, it houses ‎several ancient monuments which are considered one of Iran’s most ‎important tourist attractions. The City of Isfahan is also one of the ‎most important industrial and agricultural centers of Iran.  ‎

Zayandehrood River, which passes through the center of this province, has been one of the manifestations of this city for centuries. ‎Two historical and ancient bridges, “Si O Se Pol Bridge” (meaning 33 ‎bridge) and “Khaju Bridge”, were built in the 16th century.  ‎

Before the start of the rule of the mullahs in Iran in 1979, the ‎Zayandehrood River was one of the most water-rich rivers in Iran ‎and water flowed in it in all seasons of the year, and at the end, water ‎poured into a wetland called Gavkhoni Wetland, which was the ‎habitat of migratory birds. Farmers in the province also used the ‎water from the river to irrigate their fields. Due to the fertile soil ‎around this river, excellent quality types of vegetables, grains, and ‎fruits were produced in this province.  ‎

However, the regime’s mismanaged policies and destructive projects, including the building of dams without regard to the province’s ecosystem, have resulted in severe ecological problems. This ‎essential river has faced water shortages and droughts for years ‎because of the regime’s lack of appropriate environmental policies ‎and colossal corruption.  ‎

The river’s dryness has directly affected the livelihoods of hundreds ‎of thousands of farmers in the province and adversely affected the ‎environment. Government affiliated plants such as Mobarakeh Steel ‎Company or several ceramics factories, etc., have been using the ‎Zayandehrood River water excessively and irrationally, causing the ‎gradual dryness of this important and vital water source for the ‎ordinary people and farmers.  ‎

Additionally, the government has installed several large pipelines to transfer a significant amount of the Zayandehrood River to Yazd ‎which is located in the neighborhood of Isfahan. As a result, the ‎Zayandehrood River and Gavkhoni Wetland dried up, and the farmers’ livelihood depended on the water of this river were severely affected and destroyed.

Furthermore, the regime had dug a large number of deep wells, withdrawing water from underground reserves, affecting the ecology of the area, causing extensive land subsidence in this province, especially in the city of Isfahan. The situation is so fragile, critical, and unfortunate that even the ancient monuments of this city are ‎exposed to destruction. Large cracks and signs of deterioration have appeared in many of these historical monuments.  ‎

Farmers in Isfahan, who have worked hard their entire life and have ‎experienced a demise in their livelihood due to the lack of water, ‎skyrocketing prices of commodities, etc., rallied to demand the ‎opening of the Zayandehrood Dam and the flow of water in the ‎riverbed so that they can irrigate their fields again.  ‎

In the last days of his presidency, Hassan Rouhani’s government ‎tried to convince the farmers to end their protests and, as usual, ‎offered some hollow promises of compensation and on July 11, the ‎government opened the dam gates, let the water be released to the ‎riverbed for two weeks. However, after two weeks, the water was shut off and redirected to supply the government-affiliated factories’ water needs. As usual, the demands and welfare of the farmers and ‎ordinary people were ignored by the government’s officials, and the ‎plight of the people of Isfahan met deaf ears of the government ‎officials.

On Friday, the 12th day of a sit-in by impoverished farmers in ‎Isfahan, tens of thousands of people demonstrated in support of the ‎farmers’ protest against water shortages and the clerical regime’s ‎plundering policies that have led to the drying up of the ‎Zayandehrood River and the destruction of agriculture and livestock.

‎The massive protest spanned a large area of the Zayandehrood ‎Riverbed.   ‎

On Friday, November 19, more than 150,000 people in Isfahan ‎joined the rally in support of farmers. They protested, chanting ‎slogans accusing incompetent officials of causing the Zayandehrood ‎River to dry up and demanding water flow into the Zayandehrood ‎River.  ‎

Khamenei and his appointed president, Ebrahim Raisi, who see any ‎kind of gathering or rally, a threat to their regime’s existence, tried to ‎convince the people to end their protests and repeatedly offered ‎hollow promises and prompt actions. “I have ordered the ministers of energy and agriculture to take immediate steps to deal with the ‎issue”, Iran’s First Vice President Mohammad Mokhber said on ‎television, hoping to bring the situation to a state of calm.  ‎

After experiencing such meaningless promises from all sorts of ‎government officials, the people were not going to be fooled again ‎this time and chanted: “We will not return home until water flows ‎back into the river,” “Where is my Zayandehroodud River,” ‎‎”Zayandehrood River is our inalienable right,” and “Isfahani shout, ‎demand your rights.” If they could find a solution, they would do so ‎much sooner.

The Iranian regime’s suppressive forces and secret services, who are ‎worried about the presence of supporters and members of the ‎resistance affiliated with the Mojahedin Khalq Organization, tried to ‎send a number of their agents into the crowd and chanted slogans in ‎support of Khamenei and against the Mojahedin. But they faced the ‎raging reaction of the people and continued their slogans pointed at ‎the regime, its officials, and destructive policies.
‎
The reality is that the Iranian society is like a barrel of gunpowder ‎that can explode at any moment with any rally, gathering, anti-‎government action, etc., due to the incompetence and widespread ‎corruption in the ruling system that has caused the majority of ‎people to fall below the poverty line and inflation to reach the ‎highest level in Iranian history.

A few months ago, the same situation ‎occurred in Khuzestan province when the water of Karoon River and ‎Hur-Al-Azim Wetland, which are the main source of work for the ‎cattle breeders and farmers of this province, dried up due to ‎irrational and illogical construction of facilities and manufacturing ‎plants belonging to the Revolutionary Guards that led to widespread ‎protests in the province.

The protests rapidly spread to other provinces, and even the people of Tabriz in the northern part of Iran ‎staged several demonstrations in support of the people of Khuzestan. Eventually, the regime was able to temporarily quell the protests by ‎sending its suppressive forces to the area, killing several innocent ‎protestors, arresting hundreds of people, and injuring many. Fearful ‎of the spread of social unrest. Eventually, the regime was forced to ‎listen to the demands of the protestors by partially opening the dam ‎and letting the water be released into the Karoon River.

Now, the same issue has arisen again in Isfahan province, which, if it continues, will definitely spread to other parts of Iran. Because all ‎the people of Iran are dissatisfied with the current situation and ‎want a fundamental change in government, this is an undeniable ‎reality that Khamenei is well aware of, and so far has only been able ‎to prevent the uprising of the people through crackdown, fake ‎promises, repression, and killing.

Employing such a tactic cannot last ‎for long, a mere fact that many experts in Iran and beyond agree on. ‎Ahmadinejad, the former president of the Iranian regime, had recently said ‎that a destructive storm is brewing that would take everyone in the ‎regime with it.  ‎  

Cyrus Yaqubi is a Research Analyst and Iranian Foreign Affairs Commentator investigating the social issues and economy of the Middle East countries in general and Iran in particular.

According to the report, most company managers have told workers if they get infected with COVID-19 and are quarantined for 14 days, there is no need for them to return to work because they will be replaced. For fear of losing their job and being unable to support their families, workers who have tested COVID-19 positive and have symptoms, conceal their test results and insist on getting health certificates from doctors to return to work.

A worker who had tested positive and went to work with symptoms said that even though he had tested positive, he had to “show up at work with a fever”.

“My boss stressed that if anyone is infected and goes on leave to get better, he will be replaced, and I will lose my job. I had to come work with symptoms and fatigue. My colleagues were afraid of getting the virus from me,” he told ISNA.

A doctor in one of Isfahan’s Health Services Centers confirmed that many workers who had COVID-19 symptoms insisted on getting a health certificate to return to work. He said that there were many such cases and that workers feared that they would lose their jobs and their only source of income.

“In some ways, they are under pressure from their managers,” the doctor said.

According to a member of the Board of Supreme Center for Islamic Labor Councils, the cases of worker expulsions were mostly reported in small workshops.

Ali Aslani, a board member at Iran’s Islamic Labor Councils said workers were deprived of basic hygiene equipment, including gloves, masks, and disinfectants in most workshops. “This is one of the reasons the virus has spread in the nation especially among workers,” he added. Workers’ wages only cover only a third of their household expenses, according to ILNA state-run news agency.

ILNA said that more than 70% of Iranian workers were only able to provide 33% of their expenses. In the first six months of the Persian year (late March), there has been a 30% increase in the price of food.