Iran's nuclear facilities and other military facilities are located in Isfahan. Was Israel targeting them in the alleged attack?
Isfahan – The US government has confirmed that Israel has taken military action against Iran. Iranian media reported that air defense systems were brought into operation after reports of explosions near a major air base near the city of Isfahan in the province of the same name.
The central Iranian province of Isfahan is home to numerous military facilities, including nuclear facilities, a large air base and production facilities for Iranian drones and other military goods. The well-known Natanz uranium enrichment plant and the Iranian uranium conversion plant are also located in this province. Three small research reactors supplied by China have been in operation since 1999. They are responsible for the production of fuel and other activities as part of a civilian nuclear program.
Iran's nuclear weapons program: Can it be stopped by Israeli military action?
Israel has viewed Iran's nuclear program as a threat for some time. Over the years it has killed nuclear scientists and carried out attacks on the facilities. These attacks took the form of drone strikes and commando operations, including a January 2018 attack on a facility in Tehran in which Mossad agents stole a large amount of classified documents. According to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, these documents prove that Iran has a nuclear weapons program. In April 2021, Iran accused Israel of staging an explosion at Natanz that caused significant damage to the centrifuges. Israel has neither confirmed nor denied involvement in the attacks.
According to a report by the Arms Control Association in Washington, Iran's nuclear program is now too advanced and widespread to be effectively destroyed by military action. US magazine The Conversation reports that this would require circumventing or overwhelming Iran's air defense systems with a large-scale attack. In addition, Iran has moved many facilities underground - and the knowledge of how to build such a bomb cannot be destroyed even by attacks.
“No means to destroy the Iranian nuclear program”: The facilities are still functional
Former Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, a frequent critic of Netanyahu, recently said: "Israel can do a lot to damage Iran's infrastructure, but Israel has no means to destroy Iran's nuclear program."
Iranian state television reported that the facilities remain operational following the latest attack. The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) confirmed there was "no damage" to Iranian nuclear facilities, while the head of the UN nuclear regulator, Rafael Grossi, called for restraint. He warned that nuclear facilities should never be the target of military conflict.
Air force base and weapons production in Isfahan - Was a radar system the target?
It is believed that a radar facility at a major Iranian air base in Isfahan may have been the target of the latest attack. This is reported by the British Guardian. The aging fleet of American-made F-14 Tomcat fighter jets, acquired before the 1979 Islamic Revolution, is also based there.
The weapons production facilities in and around the city of Isfahan are also of great importance. Isfahan is a center for missile production, research and development for Iran. This also includes the assembly of Shahab medium-range missiles that can reach Israel and other countries. Early last year, an attack was carried out on a supposedly advanced weapons production facility in the city, for which Israel was blamed. As in the current attack, three drones were involved in this one.
(tpn)
Editor Tadhg Nagel wrote this article. Editor Lukas Rogalla then used an AI language model for optimization at his own discretion. All information has been carefully checked.
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