Iran on Sunday said there were “no signs of contamination” at its nuclear sites at Isfahan, Fordo, and Natanz, hours after the US targeted the three key facilities. According to Iran’s National Nuclear Safety System Center, its radiation detectors had recorded no radioactive release after the strikes. LIVE UPDATES
The Center, in a statement, also ruled out any danger to residents living around the nuclear sites.
“There is no danger to the residents living around the aforementioned sites,” it said.
The US on Sunday joined Israel’s war against Iran by bombing Tehran’s three key nuclear sites in a first-ever direct US military involvement in the conflict. The attack is seen as a major escalation, spreading fears of a full-blown war in the Middle East. It came days after US President Donald Trump said he would take as long as two weeks to decide whether the US should enter the conflict on Israel’s side.
According to Trump, the American planes “completed a very successful attack”.
One of the Iranian nuclear sites, Fordow, was Iran’s most secretive and heavily protected nuclear facility, which only the US had the firepower to destroy.
Six types of munitions were used in the strikes to attack the nuclear sites. These included: 6 x B-2 Spirit stealth bombers, Virginia/LA-class N-submarines, 12 x GBU-57 bunker busters, 30 x Tomahawk cruise missiles, F-22 Raptors for air superiority, and F-35 Lightning IIs for air support.
Risk of attack on nuclear sites
According to experts, the risk of contamination is not too much, but at enrichment facilities, UF6, or uranium hexafluoride, may become a concern. When UF6 interacts with water vapour in the air, it produces harmful chemicals. However, the extent to which any material is dispersed would depend on factors including the weather.
The risk of contamination is lower for underground facilities.
The major concern would be a strike on Iran’s nuclear reactor at Bushehr.
Experts said that while contamination from attacks on enrichment facilities would be “mainly a chemical problem” for the surrounding areas, extensive damage to large power reactors would be dangerous as radioactive elements would be released either through a plume of volatile materials or into the sea.
‘Won’t allow nuclear development to stop’
Iran’s Atomic Energy Organisation on Sunday said it would not allow the development of its “national industry” – an apparent reference to the country’s nuclear development – to be stopped. It also said the attacks on its nuclear sites violate international law.
The organisation, however, did not clarify the extent of the damage from the US strikes.
