Mansour Heqiqatpur, the former member of parliament and former deputy of Qassem Soleimani in the IRGC’s Quds Force, said about the Islamic Republic’s ability to build an atomic bomb: “To reach this summit, we have no obstacles and we have the knowledge and the necessary resources for it. All that is needed is for the country’s officials to make a decision and announce it. In that case, we can certainly achieve what we have in mind within a week.”

He added that the decision to build an atomic bomb should not be made in the streets or in parliament, but rather the Supreme National Security Council or Mojtaba Khamenei, the leader of the Islamic Republic, should make the decision in this regard.

Heqiqatpur also said, about the fatwa banning the construction of nuclear weapons: “In this matter, the fatwa is subject to time and place.” He added that rulings and fatwas issued by religious authorities can be changed according to the conditions of time and place.