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The Israeli military said Thursday it had targeted nuclear facilities in Iran's Natanz and Arak regions overnight, striking what it called a nuclear weapons development site in Natanz and the heavy water reactor in Arak.
The strikes mark a significant escalation in Israel's six-day aerial campaign against Iran's nuclear program, with Israeli forces now having attacked multiple nuclear installations across the country.
Iran's Atomic Energy Organization confirmed Israel attacked the Arak Heavy Water Nuclear Facility, also known as the Shahid Handab Research Reactor, in Iran's central province during morning hours.
Tasnim News Agency published the written statement from Iran's Atomic Energy Organization Information Center.
"The attack resulted in no casualties or injuries. Thanks to security measures taken in advance, there is no risk or damage to the population in the area surrounding the facility," the statement said.
Iranian state television reported that no nuclear leak occurred at the facility following the strike.
At Natanz, Israel struck what it described as a nuclear weapons development site. Iran had built a complex at the heart of its nuclear program at Natanz that included two enrichment plants.
The facility has been previously targeted during Israel's ongoing aerial war with Iran.
Among Iran's nuclear sites, the country had a partially built heavy-water research reactor originally called Arak and now known as Khondab.
Heavy-water reactors pose a nuclear proliferation risk because they can easily produce plutonium, which, like enriched uranium, can be used to make the core of an atom bomb.
Iran Atomic Energy Organization spokesperson Behruz Kemalvendi revealed earlier this week that Israel's attack on the Fordo Nuclear Facility in Qom caused minor damage but no nuclear contamination.
However, the strike on the Natanz Nuclear Facility in Isfahan resulted in nuclear contamination within the facility, though it did not spread outside the complex.
The current escalation began with Israeli airstrikes on June 13 targeting Iranian nuclear facilities and military commanders across different cities.
Iran reported that the chief of general staff, the Revolutionary Guards general commander, several senior commanders, and nine nuclear scientists were killed in the attacks, with total civilian casualties reaching 224.
Iran's military retaliation with ballistic missiles killed 24 people in Israel and wounded more than 500, according to official reports.
Türkiye and numerous other countries have condemned Israel's actions in the escalating conflict between the two nations.
The strikes represent Israel's most direct assault on Iran's nuclear infrastructure, targeting facilities that international observers have long monitored for potential weapons development activities.
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