Overview

• Israel’s air force struck the Arak heavy-water reactor’s core seal and multiple military production sites in overnight raids, aiming to disable Iran’s ability to produce plutonium.
• The International Atomic Energy Agency confirmed damage to Iran’s Khondab heavy-water plant’s distillation unit and noted absence of nuclear material, ruling out radiological hazards.
• Iran retaliated with hundreds of missiles and drones, deploying cluster munitions that struck Soroka Medical Center in Beersheba and residential areas near Tel Aviv, injuring over 240 civilians.
• Defense Minister Israel Katz explicitly labeled Ayatollah Khamenei a target for removal following the hospital attack, while Prime Minister Netanyahu vowed to exact a “full price” from Tehran.
• President Trump will decide within two weeks on potential US military involvement as European foreign ministers prepare to hold nuclear talks with Tehran to defuse the crisis.