Iran Nuclear Weapons: Kuhdasht Cleric Says People Urge Khamenei to Build Bomb

A Friday prayer leader in Kuhdasht says the Iranian people are calling on Supreme Leader Khamenei to develop nuclear weapons. Kuhdasht is a city in Iran’s western Lorestan province.

Clash Report shared a 92-second video of the cleric addressing a crowd on October 30.

Tehran’s Interim Imam Makes a Similar Call

The remarks came the same day Tehran’s interim Friday prayer leader, Mohammad Javad Haj Ali Akbari, spoke to worshippers. He said revising Iran’s nuclear doctrine had become a “national demand,” according to Mehr and Tasnim. Revising the doctrine could mean changing policy on acquiring nuclear weapons, BBC Persian noted.

Haj Ali Akbari said more than 70 percent of respondents in “some previous surveys” favored a review, without naming a source. He urged experts to prepare proposals for Mojtaba Khamenei and said that any final decision by the Leader would be followed. He also cited the killing of Ali Khamenei and what he called U.S. breaches of past agreements.

Which Khamenei Holds the Decision

Mojtaba Khamenei is Iran’s Supreme Leader. He succeeded his father, Ali Khamenei, who was killed in the opening hours of the U.S.-Israeli attack on February 28, BBC Persian reports.

Ali Khamenei had said that producing, stockpiling and using nuclear weapons is forbidden. Iranian officials long cited this as a “nuclear fatwa.”

Mojtaba Khamenei has not taken a clear public position on the issue, BBC Persian reports. On September 19, Supreme National Security Council Secretary Mohsen Rezaei said Iran remained committed to Ali Khamenei’s fatwa and had not changed its nuclear doctrine. He added: “we do not know what will happen in the future.”

Lawmakers Push NPT Exit

Calls from inside the system have multiplied this month. Lawmaker Abolfazl Aboutorabi said on October 27 that Iran should leave the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty and “build an atomic bomb,” Iran International reported.

On October 30, parliament presiding board member Alireza Salimi said a bill to withdraw from the treaty had been drafted and was before parliament. He also called for a revision of nuclear doctrine. Salimi said parliament could move under its highest urgency procedure if the relevant authorities approved.

IRGC-linked Tasnim also published a commentary arguing for withdrawal, though it said that would not necessarily mean building weapons. Iran has announced no decision to leave the treaty. Neither the Supreme National Security Council nor Mojtaba Khamenei has publicly endorsed withdrawal. Under Article X, a state must give three months’ notice.

Inspectors Still Locked Out

The calls come as the International Atomic Energy Agency says it still cannot verify Iran’s nuclear material. IAEA chief Rafael Grossi told the UN Security Council on October 27 that the agency has had no access to key facilities since the June 2025 war.

Before those strikes, the agency estimated Iran held about 440 kilograms of uranium enriched to 60 percent. Its fate remains uncertain.

Washington says its main goal is stopping Iran from getting a nuclear weapon. Clash Report has reported that Vice President JD Vance has offered to meet Rezaei to discuss ending the war. A senior Iranian official has also said Tehran will not change its position on the nuclear issue.

Separately, President Trump said he would address Iran as “sir” if it had a nuclear weapon. U.S. envoy Tom Barrack said an Iran deal is “very close” as regional powers mediate.