UN nuclear watchdog says Iran nuclear site damaged in strikes

One of Iran’s nuclear facilities was damaged in the strikes orchestrated by Israel and the United States over the weekend, the International Atomic Energy Agency confirmed on Tuesday morning.

The Natanz Nuclear Facility in Iran’s Isfahan province was targeted during joint military operations, said Reza Najafi, Iran’s Ambassador to the International Atomic Energy Agency. The IAEA confirmed the subsequent damage from the strikes on Tuesday morning in a social media post on X.

“Based on the latest available satellite imagery, IAEA can now confirm some recent damage to entrance buildings of Iran’s underground Natanz Fuel Enrichment Plant (FEP),” read the post. “No radiological consequence expected and no additional impact detected at FEP itself, which was severely damaged in the June conflict.”

The Natanz facility was built for uranium enrichment purposes. It was one of the facilities hit by U.S. “bunker buster” bombs during airstrikes in June 2025. 

The IAEA’s admission that Natanz was struck during this weekend’s strike was a pivot from earlier discussions by the United Nations nuclear watchdog, which claimed there was no damage. A lack of communication seemed to be the reason for the confusion.

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“Regarding the status of the nuclear installations in Iran, up to now, we have no indication that any of the nuclear installations, including the Bushehr Nuclear Power Plant, the Tehran Research Reactor, or other nuclear fuel cycle facilities have been damaged or hit,” said Rafael Grossi of the IAEA. “Efforts to contact the Iranian nuclear regulatory authorities through the IEC continue, with no response so far. We hope this indispensable channel of communication can be reestablished as soon as possible.”

“So far, no elevation of radiation levels above the usual background levels has been detected in countries bordering Iran,” he added at the time.