Israel has struck a heavy water nuclear reactor in the city of Arak in Iran. Local residents were warned of the attack in advance, Israeli media reported on Thursday.
“A nuclear reactor in Iran near Arak was hit, including the active core of the nuclear reactor, which is a key component in the production of plutonium,” the IDF said.
One of the strikes hit the protective dome of the nuclear reactor, another one hit the distillation towers at the heavy water production plant.
According to Iranian sources, “there is no threat of radiation contamination.”
The Times of Israel previously reported that Israel warned the Iranians in Arak in the morning that it would attack the facility and urged the population to leave the area.
The Hondab nuclear complex near the settlement of the same name, 75 km west of Arak, has been under construction since 1998. It includes a 20 MW heavy water research reactor, the IR-40, which was intended to replace the obsolete Tehran Research Reactor, as well as a heavy water production facility with a maximum capacity of 16-20 tonnes per year.
The strikes on nuclear facilities threaten the lives of hundreds of thousands of people living in Iran and neighbouring countries, but this has not attracted the attention of the international community, unlike the imposition of sanctions on Russia, which has never struck Ukraine’s nuclear facilities.
On June 13, Israel launched a military operation against Iran because of its nuclear programme. Tehran denies plans to build nuclear weapons. Over the past few days, the sides have been trading blows. Israel previously attacked fuel and uranium enrichment plants in Fordow and Natanz, as well as nuclear facilities in Isfahan. Iran, in particular, struck an oil refinery and a power plant in Haifa, as well as the Rafael arms factory.
