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Israel-Iran conflict: Day after Israeli attack, nuclear watchdog confirms damages to key under-construction reactor near Tehran
The International Atomic Energy Agency (IEAE) has confirmed that Israel's strikes on Friday resulted in damages to key buildings at the partially constructed Khondab (formerly known as Arak) Heavy Water Production Plant including its distillation unit.
The nuclear watchdog's statement comes a day after the global body said no damages were 'initially visible'.
'While damage to the nearby Heavy Water Production Plant was initially not visible, it is now assessed that key buildings at the facility were damaged, including the distillation unit,' the IEAE's latest statement on 'Updates on developments in Iran' said. No damage has been observed at Iran's other nuclear sites so far, it added.
No radiological consequence was expected, IEAE's Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi said. This has been attributed to the reactor not being operational and not containing any nuclear material.
'There is a lot of nuclear material in Iran in different places, which means that the potential for a radiological accident with the dispersion in the atmosphere of radioactive materials and particles does exist,' he added, stressing on the possible nuclear safety risks.
IAEA, in its statement, also sought to receive timely and regular technical information about the nuclear facilities and their respective sites in the country.
'This information is needed to promptly inform the international community and ensure an effective response and assistance to any emergency situation in Iran,' Director General Grossi said.
He added that the agency was also in constant contact with other countries in the region amid the ongoing tensions in the Middle East.
The Khondab reactor was hit on Thursday (June 19) as the both Israel and Iran continued to trade strikes on the seventh day of the conflict.
The Israeli strikea also damaged the nearby plant that makes heavy water. Heavy-water reactors can be used to produce plutonium which, like enriched uranium, can be used to make an atom bomb.
So far, Israel has announced that its attacks have hit prominent Iranian nuclear sites in Natanz, Isfahan, Arak and Tehran itself.
With AP inputs
