Nuclear power plant in Iran hit by projectile

News blog about the war in the Middle East

IAEA: Iranian nuclear power plant hit by projectile

A high-rise building collapsed due to Israeli rockets in Beirut. In Iran, the nuclear power plant was hit by a missile. All developments in the news blog.

The Iranian judiciary has executed a suspected spy for the Israeli secret service Mossad. The death sentence was carried out in the morning, reported the Iranian news agency Tasnim, which is close to the Revolutionary Guards. The man was arrested last year during the Twelve-Day War in a rural region west of the capital Tehran.

During the arrest, a large amount of cash as well as spy material and satellite phones were found, Tasnim said. The man was accused of sending images and information about sensitive facilities to the Mossad. He was originally recruited by a command officer in Sweden. There was also a meeting in Berlin. The information cannot be independently verified.

According to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), Iran’s Bushehr nuclear power plant was hit by a projectile. The UN organization based in Vienna, Austria, said it was “informed by Iran that a projectile hit the site of the Bushehr nuclear power plant on Tuesday evening” in online services on Wednesday. “No damage to the facility or injuries to employees were reported,” it said.

IAEA chief Rafael Grossi “reaffirms his call for restraint during the conflict to avoid any risk of a nuclear accident,” the agency’s statement said. The Bushehr nuclear power plant in southwestern Iran has the country’s only operating nuclear reactor, which was first connected to the power grid in 2011, according to the IAEA.

According to the IAEA, Iran is the only country without its own nuclear weapons that is enriching uranium to 60 percent. Western states have been accusing Iran of seeking nuclear weapons for years, something Tehran denies. US President Donald Trump described Iran’s nuclear program as one of the reasons for the Iran war.

According to the Lebanese Ministry of Health, at least 6 people were killed and 24 others injured in Israeli air strikes in the capital Beirut. An explosion shook the Bashura district early on Wednesday morning: According to a photographer from the German Press Agency, a high-rise building was hit and completely reduced to rubble. Israel’s military had previously warned of attacks. The district had already been the target of air strikes last week.

According to state media, an attack hit an apartment in the city center, not far from the branch of a Hezbollah financial institution that was recently attacked by the Israeli military. According to media reports, further projectiles hit the Basta district, which is also centrally located. Residents reported several clearly audible explosions. All of the areas hit on Wednesday morning are close to Lebanese government buildings such as the Ministry of Finance and the Prime Minister’s official residence.