British Spymaster Made Clandestine Israel Visit Amid Fears Iran May Jump-start Nuke Program

The head of Britain’s MI6 spy agency made a secret visit to Israel last week amid concerns Iran is contemplating jump-starting its nuclear activity with a view to reaching “breakout” capacity. Alex Younger reportedly met in Jerusalem with the head of the Mossad, which assesses that Tehran is “making preparations” for a dash to the bomb although the political directive has not yet been issued. To this end, Iran allegedly has renewed production of centrifuges on an “industrial” scale and is “getting ready” to accelerate its uranium enrichment. The news comes as Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif over the weekend warned of “surprise” measures to circumvent United States sanctions imposed after President Donald Trump pulled out of the atomic pact last May. “Trump loves the element of surprise, so we’ll entertain him,” Tehran’s top diplomat quipped, adding that “the international community must decide whether it is in their [sic] interest to let the U.S. go through [with] its illegal diktats.” Zarif’s comments dovetail with those of the head of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, who on Saturday again raised the specter of the Islamic Republic forcibly closing the Strait of Hormuz, through which around a third of global oil shipments traverses.