Iranian President Says Higher Enrichment Decision is Response to Nuclear Facility Attack 

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said Wednesday that his country’s decision to enrich uranium up to 60% purity is in response to the sabotage attack that damaged the nation’s Natanz nuclear site. 

Speaking at a Cabinet meeting, Rouhani called the move “an answer to your evilness.”  Iran had previously enriched uranium to 20%.  In addition to higher enrichment levels, Rouhani also said first-generation IR-1 centrifuges that were damaged in the attack would be replaced by more advanced IR-6 centrifuges.  Under the terms of a 2015 agreement between Iran and a group of six world powers, Iran was limited to enriching uranium up to 3.67% to allay concerns about it developing nuclear weapons.  Weapons-grade uranium is enriched to about 90%.