Israeli strikes hit Iranian reactor being built, nearby plant, IAEA says

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VIENNA (Reuters) -Israeli military strikes hit Iran’s Khondab Heavy Water Research Reactor, a project under construction that had not begun operating, and damaged the nearby plant that makes heavy water, the U.N. nuclear watchdog said on Thursday.

Israel has struck several nuclear facilities in Iran. The heavy water reactor as originally designed would have been able to easily produce plutonium that could eventually have been used in a nuclear weapon, though Iran denies seeking such weapons.

Under a 2015 deal with major powers, however, the plant was redesigned to reduce the proliferation risk and its core was removed and filled with concrete. Iran had informed the Vienna-based International Atomic Energy Agency the reactor would start operation in 2026.

“IAEA has information the Khondab (former Arak) heavy water research reactor, under construction, was hit. It was not operational and contained no nuclear material, so no radiological effects,” the IAEA said in a post on X.

Heavy water reactors use heavy water, also known as deuterium oxide, as a moderator, a material that slows down fast-moving neutrons released during the nuclear fission process that generates heat in the reactor.

In its first posting on the attack, the IAEA said it had no information indicating the nearby plant that produces heavy water had been hit. It later issued a statement revising that assessment.

“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 IAEA statement said.

(Reporting by by Francois Murphy in Vienna and Rachel More in Berlin; Editing by Daniel Wallis)