Report: Iran’s 60% Enriched Uranium Likely Remains at Isfahan

Iran’s uranium enriched to 60%, material that could eventually be used to assemble nuclear weapons, is most likely still located at the Isfahan nuclear facility in central Iran, according to a report published Sunday in The New York Times.

The report said Israeli and American intelligence agencies believe the enriched uranium remains buried underground at the site, which was damaged in strikes in June last year. Intelligence information cited in the report indicates Iranian nuclear scientists may still be able to reach the stockpile through a narrow access point, raising concerns that the material could remain usable despite the earlier attacks.

The uranium is believed to be stored in gaseous form inside containers, meaning it would still require further enrichment and additional technical processes before it could become part of a nuclear weapon. Analysts say the material would need to be enriched to roughly 90% purity and then converted into a weaponized form before it could be used in a bomb.

Western intelligence agencies and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) previously estimated that Iran possessed about 440.9 kilograms of uranium enriched to 60%, a level far beyond civilian nuclear needs. Experts have said that enriching uranium from 60% to weapons-grade levels can be technically easier and faster than earlier stages of enrichment.

The New York Times report also highlighted the strategic concern surrounding the material’s location. On Saturday, U.S. President Donald Trump was asked whether Washington might consider sending ground forces to ensure the uranium stockpile does not fall back into the hands of the Iranian regime.

“Right now we’re just decimating them, but we haven’t gone after it. But something we could do later on,” Trump said when asked about the possibility of securing the uranium.

Earlier reporting by the news site Semafor said the United States and Israel had discussed the possibility of deploying special forces into Iran at a later stage of the war to secure the country’s enriched uranium stockpile.

Meanwhile, the Israeli military has continued targeting what it describes as Iran’s broader nuclear weapons infrastructure. Last week the IDF said it struck and destroyed the secret Min Zadai complex near Tehran, which Israeli officials said had been used by the Iranian regime to advance nuclear weapons-related capabilities.

According to the IDF, the site housed a covert group of nuclear scientists working on components connected to a potential weapons program.

“Despite the severe blow to the Iranian nuclear weapons group, the Iranian terror regime has not stopped its military nuclear activity and continued developing the capabilities required for nuclear weapons while moving infrastructure to an underground site protected from airstrikes,” IDF spokesman Effie Defrin said.

“Inside the site, a group of nuclear scientists operated secretly to develop a central component of the nuclear weapons system,” he added.

Israeli officials said intelligence monitoring allowed the military to identify the scientists’ new location, enabling a precise strike on the facility. According to information cited by Israeli authorities, the complex was involved in developing the detonation mechanism required for a nuclear weapon, a reminder that uranium enrichment alone is not sufficient to produce a bomb and must be combined with additional weaponization technology.