July 25, 2025

This month’s newsletter features a report on the status of Iran’s nuclear facilities, which were targeted in airstrikes last month. The international community has long raised concerns about the dual-use potential of Iran’s nuclear infrastructure, which could be used to make fuel for reactors or weapons. Israel and the United States acted on those concerns, carrying out airstrikes that caused damage to Iran’s uranium enrichment and processing sites at Natanz, Fordow, and Isfahan. However, the full extent of the damage remains unclear, absent on-site inspections.

The newsletter also includes profiles of individuals and companies sanctioned for procuring missile-applicable items for Iran’s military, as well as news about the interdiction of Iranian arms en route to the Houthis in Yemen and efforts to resume International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) inspections in Iran. Additions to the Iran Watch library include government comments on the prospect of renewed nuclear diplomacy with Iran and new U.S. and European sanctions and enforcement actions against Iran – particularly its ability generate revenue through oil sales.

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PUBLICATIONS

Graphic depicting the outcome of U.S. strikes on the Fordow Fuel Enrichment Plant. (Photo Credit: U.S. Department of Defense)

Last month, Israel and the United States carried out airstrikes against a number of Iranian nuclear facilities. Iran is home to dozens of nuclear-related sites, some connected to uranium enrichment, some to suspected nuclear weaponization work, and some to nuclear research and energy generation. Because of the dual-use potential of many of these facilities – they can be used to manufacture fuel for nuclear reactors or nuclear weapons – the international community has long raised concerns that Iran could use this infrastructure and expertise to make weapons.

The airstrikes were a response to this concern. Some details about the damage caused to Iran’s nuclear facilities have come to light, though it is unclear when the full extent of damage will be publicly known, particularly given the absence of international inspectors.

 

ENTITIES OF CONCERN

Iran continues to use domestic manufacturers to obtain missile-applicable items, including electronic components and gyroscopes, from abroad. The U.S. Treasury Department sanctioned two such entities for coordinating procurement for Ministry of Defense and Armed Forces Logistics (MODAFL) subordinates.

Azmoon Pajohan Hesgar Limited Liability Company

An Iran-based test equipment manufacturer that has coordinated procurement for Shahid Bagheri Industrial Group (SBIG), an entity responsible for Iran's solid-fueled ballistic missile program; also involved in the design of sensor and inertial navigation system tests.

Ezzatullah Ghasemian Sorbani

An Iranian national; managing director and chairman of the board of directors of Azmoon Pajohan Hesgar LLC; has facilitated missile-related procurement for MODAFL subordinates.

Aerospace Industries Organization (AIO)

MODAFL subsidiary that oversees Iran's missile production, including the work of SBIG and Shahid Hemat Industrial Group (SHIG), which is responsible for Iran's liquid-fueled ballistic missile program.

 

IN THE NEWS

Iranian-origin arms seized by the Yemeni National Resistance Forces in July 2025. (Photo Credit: U.S. Department of Defense)

July 16, 2025: A Yemeni armed group seized more than 750 tons of arms bound from Iran to the Houthis, according to U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM). The seized weapons included cruise missiles, anti-ship missiles, and anti-aircraft missiles, as well as warheads, seekers, drone engines, air defense equipment, radar systems, and communications equipment. The group, the Yemeni National Resistance Forces (NRF), is led by a nephew of Yemen's late former president Ali Abdullah Saleh and is not part of Yemen's internationally recognized government, although it opposes the Houthis.

July 17, 2025: A new U.S. assessment found that U.S. strikes on three Iranian nuclear sites in June largely destroyed the Fordow site, setting back uranium enrichment work by as much as two years, but that the other two sites were not as badly damaged. Iran may be able to resume uranium enrichment at these locations in the next several months, according to the assessment. The U.S. and Israeli government have been discussing whether additional strikes on the two less damaged facilities could be necessary if Iran does not agree to resume nuclear negotiations with the United States, or if there are signs that Iran is trying to rebuild at those locations.

July 23, 2025: Iran has agreed to host a delegation from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) in the coming weeks, an indication that it may allow international inspectors to resume monitoring nuclear work in the country. However, Iranian officials did not offer assurance that inspectors would eventually be allowed to visit Iran’s key nuclear sites of Fordow, Natanz, and Isfahan, which were struck by the United States. Following U.S. and Israeli air strikes, Iran enacted a law suspending cooperation with the IAEA and inspectors subsequently left the country for safety reasons. European foreign ministers told Iran that the reimposition of U.N. sanctions might be delayed if Tehran resumed cooperation with the IAEA.

 

FROM THE LIBRARY

Renewed efforts at nuclear diplomacy with Iran following U.S. and Israeli airstrikes are complicated by a lack of trust and impending deadlines.

  • At the United Nations, Iran’s Deputy Foreign Ministry questions Iran’s membership in the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty, saying that “if you are outside the NPT, you will not only escape censure, but will also enjoy privilege and impunity” – July 22
  • In an interview on Fox News, Iran’s Foreign Minister admits airstrikes seriously damaged Iranian nuclear facilities but says that Iran will not give up uranium enrichment – July 21
  • Meeting with the United States, France, Germany and the United Kingdom agree to trigger the “snapback” of U.N. sanctions by the end of August if no new deal with Iran is reached – July 15
  • French Foreign Ministry Spokesman: resolving the problem of Iran's nuclear program in the long term will come through negotiation and an agreement – July 1


In the aftermath of airstrikes on Iranian nuclear facilities, the United States and its partners continue enforcement actions against Iran – particularly its ability generate revenue through oil sales.

  • The European Union imposes sanctions on Iranian national Hossein Shamkhani and several of his companies for helping Russia circumvent restrictions on oil sales - July 21
  • Lebanese national sentenced for conspiring to export U.S.-made drill rigs to Iran in violation of U.S. sanctions – July 21
  • CEO of Iranian engineering company arrested for allegedly shipping sophisticated electronics from the U.S. to Iran – July 11
  • The U.S. Departments of State and Treasury target an Iranian “shadow banking” network operating from Hong Kong, Turkey, and the United Arab Emirates that supports the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps-Qods Force (IRGC-QF) – July 9
  • The United States disrupts network smuggling Iranian oil disguised as, or blended with, Iraqi oil operated by Iraqi-British national Salim Ahmed Said – July 3
  • State and Treasury sanction entities for the procurement and shipment of proliferation-sensitive machinery from China for Iran’s defense industry – June 20

Iran Watch is a website published by the Wisconsin Project on Nuclear Arms Control. The Wisconsin Project is a non-profit, non-partisan organization that conducts research, advocacy, and public education aimed at inhibiting strategic trade from contributing to the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction. 


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