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Reuters

Commercial satellite imagery has captured what appears to be the first known strikes on an Iranian nuclear site since the start of the US-Israeli air operation, an independent policy institute said on Monday.
The Institute for Science and International Security said imagery produced by Colorado-based Vantor showed two strikes on access points to the underground uranium enrichment plant at Natanz, which was hit by the US last June.
David Albright, a former UN ‌nuclear inspector and founder of the institute, said the strikes appeared to have occurred sometime between Sunday afternoon and Monday morning local time, based on the satellite imagery his group reviewed.
He was unable to identify whether the US or Israel hit the Natanz complex, one of the main facilities of Iran’s nuclear programme.

He credited Ben Tzion Macales, an Israeli geo-analyst, as being the first to find satellite imagery of the Natanz strikes.
The US and Israel launched their air war against Iran early Saturday, triggering Iranian retaliatory strikes around the region.
Albright’s findings appeared to corroborate an earlier statement by Reza Najafi, Iran’s envoy to the International Atomic Energy Agency, that Natanz was hit on Sunday. Najafi was disputing a ⁠comment by IAEA chief Raphael Grossi, who said there was no sign that any nuclear site had been hit.
Albright said it was likely that Grossi had relied on imagery produced ‌before the pictures obtained by his institute.
The IAEA did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The White House and US Central Command also did not immediately respond.
Iran’s nuclear programme is among the reasons Israel and the US have given for the attacks, alleging Iran was getting ‌too close to being able to eventually make a nuclear bomb. Iran has repeatedly denied seeking a nuclear arsenal.


Albright’s report said Vantor’s imagery showed that three buildings ⁠at Natanz had been destroyed. Two ⁠were personnel entrances to two underground halls housing thousands of centrifuges, machines that enrich uranium for use in power plants or weapons depending on the duration.
Even though the halls were rendered inoperable by the US attack in June, the strikes ‌could indicate that the halls still contained “recoverable centrifuges” or other related equipment, the report said.
The third building destroyed covered the only vehicle access ramp to the underground halls, it said.
Grossi said in a statement to a meeting of the IAEA’s 35-nation ‌board of ‌governors that the agency had no indication that “any of the nuclear installations ... have been damaged or hit”.
Moments after Grossi’s remarks, Najafi told reporters outside that Natanz had been attacked.
“Again they attacked ‌Iran’s peaceful, safeguarded nuclear facilities yesterday,” Najafi said. Asked by Reuters which facilities were hit, he replied: “Natanz” and left.
While the IAEA’s crisis-response centre has been unable ⁠to reach Iran’s nuclear regulatory authorities, there has been some contact with Iranian officials, Grossi told a press conference.
“We are, of course, in conversation with Iran, but at the moment, it’s very ⁠limited. Until last Thursday, it was very intense,” he said, adding that while the IAEA has no staff in Iran at the moment, it is watching satellite images closely.
Tehran has not let the IAEA return to its bombed facilities since they were attacked in June.
Natanz housed facilities including two ‌uranium-enrichment plants attacked in June - an above-ground one the ‌IAEA says was destroyed and the underground facility containing the two centrifuge halls that were at least badly damaged at the time.
Asked about Najafi’s remarks, Grossi stood firm at his later press conference, saying: “I will not get into a polemic on that. We stand by what I said before”.
Grossi was in Geneva for the last two rounds of Oman-mediated talks between Iran and the United States, discussing nuclear specifics with both sides.
“An understanding eluded the parties this time. I am sure we are, quite understandably, feeling a strong sense of frustration,” Grossi told the board.


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US-Israel war on Iran

A view of the Natanz facility with building damage. Photo: Vantor via Reuters 

The Natanz nuclear complex on March 1, 2026 (top) on March 2, 2026 (below) with damage observed on several buildings. Photo: Vantor via AFP

What weapons were used in US and Iran strikes, and which are also deployed near China?

The LUCAS one-way attack drone used in US-Israeli strikes on Iran at the weekend can be launched in multiple ways, including rocket-assisted take-off, ground-based and vehicle-mounted mobile launch systems. Photo: Handout

Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Spruance (DDG 111) fires a Tomahawk Land Attack Missile (TLAM) in Operation Epic Fury on Saturday. Photo: Handout

The MQ-9 Reaper drone. Photo: Reuters

The US said its B-2 stealth bombers, armed with 2,000lb bombs, struck Iran’s facilities. Photo: US Central Command

In US strikes on Iran, North Korea sees nuclear vindication

Smoke rises over Tehran following missile strikes on Sunday. The US and Israel launched strikes against Iran on Saturday, killing the country’s supreme leader and top military leaders. Photo: AFP

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un delivers a speech on Sunday. Photo: KCNA/KNS/AFP

A projectile is launched during a long-range strategic cruise missile launching drill at an unknown location in North Korea on December 28. Photo: KCNA/Reuters

North Korea’s leader Kim Jong-un shakes hands with US President Donald Trump during their final meeting in June 2019. Photo: AFP

Trump says Iran war could last a month or longer as conflict widens

US President Donald Trump at the White House on Monday. Photo: Reuters

An F/A-18F Super Hornet after landing on the USS Abraham Lincoln. Photo: US Navy via AFP

Smoke rises from a reported Iranian strike in the area where the US embassy is located in Kuwait City. Photo: AFP

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Strikes on Iran’s Natanz complex occurred between Sunday afternoon and Monday morning, report shows


Strikes on Iran’s Natanz complex occurred between Sunday afternoon and Monday morning, report shows.


New satellite photos show apparent attack on Iran nuclear site: report

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}Strikes on Iran’s Natanz complex occurred between Sunday afternoon and Monday morning, report shows

Strikes on Iran’s Natanz complex occurred between Sunday afternoon and Monday morning, report shows