Israel attacks nuclear site as Iran batters hospital

Jana Choukeir, Alexander Cornwell and Crispian Balmer | June 19, 2025

Israel has struck a key Iranian nuclear site and Iranian missiles hit an Israeli hospital, as President Donald Trump kept the world guessing about whether the US would join Israel in air strikes seeking to destroy Tehran’s nuclear facilities.

A week of Israeli air and missile strikes against its major rival has wiped out the top echelon of Iran’s military command, damaged its nuclear capabilities and killed hundreds of people, while Iranian retaliatory strikes have killed at least two dozen civilians in Israel.

The Israeli military said it targeted the Khondab nuclear reactor in Iran’s Arak overnight, including its partially built heavy-water research reactor. 

Iranian media reported two projectiles hitting an area near the facility, which had been evacuated and there were no reports of radiation threats.

Israel’s military said it also struck a site in the area of Natanz, which it said contained components and specialised equipment used to advance nuclear weapons development.

On Thursday morning, several Iranian missiles struck populated areas in Israel, including the main hospital in the southern part of the country, according to an Israeli military official.

Trails of missiles and interception efforts were visible in the skies over Tel Aviv, with explosions heard as incoming projectiles were intercepted. 

Israeli media also reported direct hits in central Israel.

Emergency services said five people had been seriously injured in the attacks and dozens of others hurt in three separate locations. 

Soroka Medical Centre in Beersheba, in southern Israel, reported it had sustained damage.

Iran’s Revolutionary Guard said it was targeting Israeli military and intelligence headquarters near the hospital.

The worst-ever conflict between the two regional powers has raised fears that it will draw in world powers and further destabilise the Middle East.

Speaking to reporters outside the White House on Wednesday, Trump declined to say if he had made any decision on whether to join Israel’s air campaign. 

“I may do it. I may not do it. I mean, nobody knows what I’m going to do,” he said.

Trump in later remarks said Iranian officials wanted to come to Washington for a meeting.

“We may do that,” he said, adding “it’s a little late” for such talks.

Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei rebuked Trump’s earlier call for Iran to surrender in a recorded speech played on television, his first appearance since Friday.

“Any US military intervention will undoubtedly be accompanied by irreparable damage,” he said. “The Iranian nation will not surrender.”

Iran denies it is seeking nuclear weapons and says its program is for peaceful purposes only. 

Trump has veered from proposing a swift diplomatic end to the war to suggesting the United States might join it.

A source said Trump and his team were considering options that included joining Israel in strikes against Iranian nuclear installations.

But the prospect of a US strike against Iran has exposed divisions among Republican supporters who brought Trump to power, with some urging him not to get the country involved in a new Middle East war.

Senior US Senate Democrats urged Trump to prioritise diplomacy and seek a binding agreement to prevent Iran attaining nuclear weapons, while expressing concern about his administration’s approach.

In social media posts on Tuesday, Trump mused about killing Khamenei.

Russian President Vladimir Putin, asked what his reaction would be if Israel did kill Iran’s supreme leader with the assistance of the United States, said: “I do not even want to discuss this possibility. I do not want to.”

Putin said all sides should look for ways to end hostilities in a way that ensured both Iran’s right to peaceful nuclear power and Israel’s right to the unconditional security of the Jewish state.

Since Friday, Iran has fired about 400 missiles at Israel, some 40 of which have pierced air defences, killing 24 people, all of them civilians, according to Israeli authorities.

Iran has reported at least 224 deaths in Israeli attacks, mostly civilians, but has not updated that toll for days.

with AP