The Atomic Energy Organization of Iran (AEOI) reported that its uranium concentration facility in Ardakan, Yazd province, was targeted in an attack by US-Israel forces on 27/3. The organization stated, "Initial assessments indicate no leakage of radioactive material from the plant. Local residents have no cause for concern." Uranium concentrate is produced by using acid to extract uranium from ore. This material is then further processed and enriched to increase its purity for civilian and military applications.

Smoke rises from an airstrike site in Tehran, Iran on 3/3. Photo: AFP

Fars News agency reported that Hassan Ghamari, an official in Iran's Markazi province, stated that US-Israel forces also targeted the Khondab heavy water production complex in the province. This incident caused no casualties or radiation leakage in the area. The Israeli military confirmed it conducted an airstrike on the Arak heavy water facility, formerly known as Khondab, after detecting Tehran's efforts to rebuild the site. Heavy water reactors can generate plutonium, an element that can be enriched similarly to uranium and used in atomic bomb cores. Iran had announced plans to build the Khondab heavy water reactor for research purposes, intending to make it operational this year. However, the facility was previously bombed by the US and Israel during a 12-day conflict in 6/2025.

Iranian media further accused the US and Israel of attacking the Khuzestan and Mobarakeh steel plants, located in the southwest and central parts of the country, respectively. Steel is a strategic material for industrial and military production, including the manufacture of missiles and ships. Fars News reported that targets included a substation and an alloy steel production line at the Mobarakeh plant, along with a warehouse at the Khuzestan plant. The Tasnim news agency indicated that the attack on the Mobarakeh plant resulted in one fatality and two injuries.

Location of some of Iran's nuclear facilities. Graphic: AFP

The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) declared it would retaliate by targeting industrial companies linked to the US and Israel in the region. The IRGC urged employees at these facilities to leave their workplaces and advised residents within a one km radius to evacuate until the attacks conclude. Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz previously stated that Israel would intensify its airstrikes against Iran, warning Tehran would pay a heavy price for continuing to launch ballistic missiles. He said, "The Israeli military will increase the intensity of its attacks and expand its targets to industries that help Iran develop and use weapons against Israeli civilians. They will pay a heavy, increasingly severe price."