Iran Strikes Israel: Nuclear Center Targeted, Over 100 Injured
Iranian missiles struck two communities in southern Israel near the Dimona nuclear research facility on Sunday, injuring more than 100 people, according to Israeli emergency services. The attacks on Dimona and the nearby town of Arad marked the first time Israel’s nuclear research center has been directly targeted in the three-week-vintage conflict.
The strikes came hours after Iran’s Natanz nuclear enrichment facility was hit in an airstrike, an attack for which Israel’s military has denied responsibility. Israel’s military stated it was unable to intercept the Iranian missiles that hit Dimona and Arad, both located in the sparsely populated Negev desert.
Magen David Adom, Israel’s emergency rescue agency, reported that at least 64 people were injured in the strike on Arad. Seven were hospitalized in serious condition, 15 in moderate condition and 42 with minor injuries. Rescue teams continue to search debris for additional casualties. Earlier, Magen David Adom reported at least 40 injuries in a separate strike on Dimona.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed to continue military operations in the Middle East following the attacks. “Here’s a very difficult evening in the campaign for our future,” Netanyahu said in a statement posted to social media. He added that he had spoken with the mayor of Arad and offered prayers for the injured. “We are determined to continue to strike our enemies on all fronts,” he stated.
Footage from Israeli emergency services showed a large crater near apartment buildings in Arad, with outer walls sheared away. Rescue workers reported widespread damage to at least 10 buildings, three of which were in danger of collapsing. The missile appeared to have struck an open area.
Israel is widely believed to possess the Middle East’s sole nuclear arsenal, though its leaders neither confirm nor deny this. The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) stated on X, formerly known as Twitter, that it had not received reports of damage to the Israeli center or abnormal radiation levels.
Israel denied responsibility for the strike on Iran’s Natanz nuclear facility, located approximately 135 miles southeast of Tehran. Iranian state media reported no leakage of radioactive materials. The IAEA stated it was investigating the strike but had not detected any increase in off-site radiation levels. The Natanz facility was previously targeted in Israeli airstrikes during a 12-day war between Iran and Israel in June 2025, and also by the U.S. Later that month.
According to the IAEA, the majority of Iran’s estimated 970 pounds of enriched uranium is currently located at its Isfahan facility, which was also bombed by the U.S. Last June. The Pentagon declined to comment on the Natanz strike.
Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, Iran’s Parliament Speaker, stated on X that if Israel is unable to intercept missiles in the Dimona area, it “is, operationally, a sign of entering a new phase of the battle.”
CBS News reported Friday, citing multiple sources briefed on the discussions, that the Trump administration has been strategizing methods and options to secure or extract Iran’s nuclear materials. The timing of any such operation, if ordered by President Trump, remains unclear, and a decision has not yet been made.