Days after the U.S. struck key nuclear facilities across Iran, clerics in Qom - the province where Fordow Fuel Enrichment Plant is based - share their thoughts on the standoff between the two nations.

The United States has joined Israel in striking nuclear targets in Iran. It follows an escalating broader conflict in the region including the ongoing Gaza war.

Iran Strikes

Clerics in the Iranian city of Qom, a significant religious center and the location of the Fordow nuclear enrichment plant, have responded to recent U.S. military strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities. They emphasized that such actions will not deter Iran from its chosen path, asserting that faith and resilience will only be strengthened by external pressure.

Iranian officials acknowledged damage to their nuclear program, specifically at Fordow, but insisted that the program remains operational and that Iran will not relinquish its right to nuclear enrichment. The clerics and officials conveyed a message of defiance, stating their intention to continue resisting pressure from both the United States and Israel.

Clerics in Qom respond to U.S. strikes

This is the holy shrine of Masumeh in the holy city of Qom, which is the second holiest site in all of Iran. Now this place is extremely important for the Islamic Republic of Iran. There's a lot of religious schools here, a lot of religious seminaries, and of course a lot of the thinking, the religious thinking that underpins the actions of the Islamic Republic is developed here. All of that even more important now that Iran is in this massive standoff with the Trump administration and with the Israelis. So we went out and we asked a couple of clerics here how they feel about that standoff and what could happen next. If Trump ever has goodwill, do not mess with countries and let people live their lives, he says. This promise has been made by God, he says, that if you believe in God, he is the one who guides your arrows to the hearts of the enemy. And he says they think they're able to stop us from our chosen path through bombing, killing and terror. This is why these terrors and wars will only strengthen our faith instead of weakening us. Now there's one other reason why this part of Iran is so important. The province of Qom is also where the Fordow nuclear enrichment plant is located, which of course President Trump claims to have, as he put it, obliterated with those US bunker buster bombs that were dropped a couple of days ago. The Iranians acknowledge that their nuclear program has been damaged, but they say that it is still very much alive. And they also say that they're not going to back down from what they call their right to nuclear enrichment, and they also say that they are going to stay defiant in the face of pressure, both from the US and from Israel. For Pleitgen, CNN, Qom, Iran.

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Clerics in Qom respond to U.S. strikes

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