Iran Tested Advanced Nuke Warhead Technology

Iran has tested nuclear warhead technology so advanced that its very existence is an official secret in the US and Britain, according to a report from the UN’s nuclear watchdog group, the International Atomic Energy Agency. The dossier, obtained by the Guardian, says Iran has tested the high-explosive components of a design known as “two-point implosion,” which can produce simple, compact warheads.

Though the IAEA often treats such documents with skepticism, they say this one is so well-sourced and detailed that Iran needs to address it. “It is breathtaking that Iran could be working on this sort of material,” says a European government nuclear expert. Adds a British expert, “Before perfecting step one, they are going straight to step four or five.” (More Iran stories.)