Iran's Nuclear Doctrine Under Scrutiny Amid Regional Conflict
Iran's nuclear doctrine faces scrutiny as Western intelligence reports suggest wartime pressures and shifting rhetoric are eroding decades-old taboos regarding atomic weapons.
The question of Iran's political directive to build a bomb has accompanied the West for decades. Tehran's official line relies on a fatwa by Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, who ruled in the early 2000s that nuclear weapons are forbidden under Islam.
The Secret Amad Program
Despite official denials, Iran operated a clandestine nuclear weapons program codenamed "Amad", headed by Mohsen Fakhrizadeh. In 2018, Mossad agents smuggled half a ton of documents and CDs from a Tehran warehouse, revealing the Iranian nuclear archive.
Evolving Rhetoric
Intelligence assessments indicate that while Supreme Leader Khamenei has not authorized building a weapon, recent wartime pressures and the erosion of decades-long taboos have fueled discussions in state media about potentially withdrawing from the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT).
