As tensions between Israel and Iran flare once more, Rafael Grossi, the director-general of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), has issued a sobering warning about the potentially catastrophic consequences of military escalation over Tehran’s nuclear program. In remarks published on June 6 by the Financial Times, Grossi cautioned that any Israeli strike on Iran’s fortified nuclear facilities could ignite a broader regional conflict, severely undermining global non-proliferation efforts and risking widespread devastation.

The Israeli government, under Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, has made no secret of its readiness to launch preemptive strikes on Iran should diplomatic efforts to restrain Tehran’s nuclear ambitions falter. This stance comes amid renewed US-Iran talks, which seek to revive a nuclear accord similar to the 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA). That deal, brokered under the Obama administration, collapsed after US President Donald Trump unilaterally withdrew in 2018, triggering Iran to scale up its uranium enrichment beyond previously agreed limits.

Grossi, who has made multiple inspections of Iran’s nuclear sites, underscored the physical and strategic challenges Israel would face in any attempt to neutralize Iran’s nuclear infrastructure. “The most sensitive things are half a mile underground – I have been there many times. To get there you take a spiral tunnel down, down, down,” he explained, implying that any strike would likely require sustained military operations and carry........

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