IAEA Warns of "Radiological Release" Risk
The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has issued a stark warning that it “cannot rule out” a possible radiological release from military strikes in Iran. While the agency has no evidence that nuclear facilities have been directly targeted yet, the warning highlights the growing risk of the war triggering a nuclear or environmental crisis by accident or design.
IAEA Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi issued the warning before the agency's Board of Governors, stating the situation is "very concerning." While no radiation levels above normal have been detected in bordering countries, the IAEA's Incident and Emergency Centre is on alert but has been unable to establish communication with Iranian nuclear authorities. The primary concern is a potential strike on key nuclear sites, such as the Bushehr Nuclear Power Plant, the Natanz and Fordo enrichment facilities, or the Isfahan Nuclear Technology Center. The head of Russia's state nuclear corporation, Rosatom, which helped build Bushehr, warned that the plant is "certainly under threat" due to nearby explosions. Iran's nuclear facilities have been targeted before. In June 2025, during a conflict dubbed the "Twelve-Day War," the U.S. and Israel struck facilities at Natanz, Fordo, and Isfahan. While the full extent of the damage from those strikes remains debated, they caused significant disruption to Iran's program. Beyond direct military action, Iran's nuclear program has also faced cyberattacks. The most famous is the Stuxnet worm, believed to be a U.S.-Israeli creation, which was discovered in 2010. Stuxnet manipulated industrial control systems to physically damage centrifuges at the Natanz facility, reportedly destroying nearly a fifth of them.
