Iran’s Foreign Ministry on Monday confirmed that the country’s parliament is drafting a bill to withdraw from the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT). However, officials reiterated Iran’s consistent opposition to the development of weapons of mass destruction.

President Masoud Pezeshkian clarified that while Iran will continue its peaceful nuclear research, it has no plans to develop nuclear weapons, citing Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei’s religious edict banning such weapons.

This announcement comes amid intensifying hostilities with Israel, with both countries exchanging missile strikes for three days straight. Israeli authorities have reportedly warned residents near Iranian weapons sites to evacuate, heightening fears of a larger regional conflict.

Iran’s nuclear activities have drawn renewed global attention since 2018, when the U.S. exited the Iran nuclear deal. Since then, Iran has accelerated uranium enrichment — a process that can be used to make nuclear weapons — though Tehran insists its goals are peaceful.

Despite concerns raised by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) over Iran’s stockpile of enriched uranium, the Iranian leadership maintains that the country will not pursue atomic bombs, and that its nuclear program is within legal and religious limits.