The war escalates to include nuclear targets

BarcelonaThe war in the Middle East escalated further this Saturday. If before the nuclear risk was only a threat, now it seems entirely feasible. The day began with a statement from the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran (AEOI), denouncing that the United States and Israel had attacked the Shahid Ahmadi Roshan uranium enrichment facility in Iran's Natanz province. Fortunately, there were no fatalities. The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) confirmed that no increase in radiation levels was detected outside the nuclear facility, but expressed serious concern that all red lines could be crossed. But the risk did not end there. That evening, Iran responded to the attack by firing missiles at the town of Dimona, located in southern Israel, home to one of the country's main nuclear facilities for uranium enrichment for the development of nuclear weapons. Also on Saturday, Iran expanded the scope of its attacks, firing two ballistic missiles at the strategic military base on Diego Garcia, located 3,800 kilometers from Iran in the Indian Ocean, and shared by the United Kingdom and the United States. The attack has demonstrated that Iran's offensive capabilities are far greater than previously thought.

"The IAEA Director General, Rafael Grossi, reiterates the call for military restraint to avoid any risk of a nuclear accident," the international agency emphasized in a message posted on social media just hours after the Natanz uranium enrichment center in Iran was attacked. In fact, these facilities were already targeted by Israel and the United States on the fourth day of the war, but on that occasion, no projectile hit the uranium enrichment center, as happened this Saturday, which triggered widespread alarm. Even Russia has spoken out. "This is a flagrant violation of international law," stated Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova in a press release, despite Moscow's repeated attacks on nuclear facilities in Ukraine. The IAEA's warnings, however, have fallen on deaf ears. At the end of the day, Iran attempted retaliation, firing several missiles at the city of Dimona. One of the projectiles breached Israeli air defenses, striking a building and causing a large fire. A total of 47 people were injured, including a 10-year-old boy. Some suffered shrapnel wounds, while others were injured while running for cover, and some even experienced panic attacks. About 13 kilometers south of Dimona, in the Negev Desert, lies a nuclear facility that, according to the Israeli government, is dedicated exclusively to research, but which has been strongly suspected for six decades of being where Israel manufactures its atomic bombs. In fact, Iran has openly admitted that the target of its attack was precisely this uranium enrichment center, thus escalating the conflict.

The scope of the conflict grows

Furthermore, the threat increases after Iran attacked the Diego Garcia military base this Saturday. Last month, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi claimed that they only possessed missiles with a maximum range of 2,000 kilometers. However, the attack on the Indian Ocean island demonstrates that this is not the case, and that their projectiles have a much greater range. Specifically, Tehran fired two ballistic missiles at the military base, but neither hit the installations. One failed in flight, while the other was intercepted by a US warship. The Diego Garcia base is especially strategic due to its geographical location, situated midway between Africa, the Persian Gulf, South Asia, and Indonesia, but also because of its facilities: on the one hand, it has 3,600-meter-long runways, equipped for BB, B-2, and cargo aircraft such as the C-17 Globemaster; And for its part, it has a port with capacity for thirty warships.

Sources from the British Ministry of Defense have clarified that the Iranian attack on the base took place before Downing Street announced on Friday that It will allow the US military to use the Diego Garcia base, and the Fairford base, in Englandto carry out punitive operations against Iran to unblock the Strait of Hormuz, and also to destroy the Persian country's missile launchers.

This clarification, however, does not seem to have reassured Cyprus, where there is also a British military base, Akrotiri. On Saturday afternoon, the UK Prime Minister, Keir Starmer, called the Cypriot President, Nikos Christodoulides, to assure him that this military base will not be used by US troops to attack Iran.