During the Iran War, Tehran reported another attack on its Natans nuclear facility (archive image).Image: AZ
March 21, 2026, 4:06 p.mMarch 21, 2026, 4:07 p.m
During the Iran war, Tehran reported another attack on its Nathan nuclear facility. According to Iranian information, increased radiation levels have not yet been detected. The US military says it has already attacked more than 8,000 targets in its now three-week offensive against Iran. While US President Donald Trump recently held out the prospect of a possible reduction in attacks, Israel announced reinforcements.
The underground uranium enrichment facility in Natans is considered central to Iran’s nuclear program. After the renewed attack on the complex south of the capital Tehran, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) called on the warring parties to exercise military restraint. It is important to avoid any risk of a nuclear accident, wrote IAEA boss Rafael Grossi on the online platform X.
These are the latest developments.
Nuclear facility has been targeted several times
Shortly after the start of the American-Israeli attacks on Iran, the Vienna-based authority confirmed new damage to the entrance buildings in Natans. The USA and Israel had already bombed and severely damaged Iran’s nuclear facilities in June 2025 – including Natan’s. The technology to enrich uranium can be used to produce reactor fuel or even nuclear weapons.
The US states that one of the war aims is to prevent Iran from ever acquiring nuclear weapons. Israel sees Iran’s nuclear and missile program as its greatest existential threat. In the past, Iranian politicians had repeatedly threatened the Jewish state with destruction. Tehran denies developing nuclear weapons.
Iran attacks remote US base
For the first time, Tehran fired rockets at the remote US-British base at Diego Garcia. According to state television, two ballistic missiles were fired at the military base in the Indian Ocean. However, none of them hit the shared base, reported the Wall Street Journal and CNN, citing senior US officials. Accordingly, one projectile failed during flight, the second was intercepted.
The base is located around 4,000 kilometers southeast of the Iranian coast – about twice as far as the previously officially confirmed range of the Iranian missile arsenal. With such a range, Iranian medium-range missiles could theoretically also reach European cities.
Israel wants to increase attacks
Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz announced a further increase in attacks in Iran. The targets are the Iranian leadership and the infrastructure on which it relies, said Katz.
They are determined to continue the fight against the Iranian power apparatus, “beheading its commanders and destroying its strategic capabilities – until every security threat to the State of Israel and US interests in the region is eliminated.”
And what does Donald Trump say?
US President Trump announced on Friday that he was considering scaling back attacks in Iran. The United States was on the verge of achieving its goals in the war. At the same time, according to US media reports, the USA is sending thousands more soldiers to the region
Trump called NATO allies “cowards” for their lack of help in securing oil transport through the Strait of Hormuz. Without the USA, the defense alliance would be a toothless tiger, the Republican wrote on the Truth Social platform. He accused the allies of not taking part in the fight against Iran’s nuclear armament.
Among the targets attacked by the US so far are 130 Iranian ships, said the commander of the US Regional Command for the Middle East (Centcom), Brad Cooper, in a video published on the X platform. “This is the largest defeat of a navy in a three-week period since World War II,” he added.
Mutual missile attacks
Iran nevertheless remained combative. According to the state broadcasting agency Iribnews, the Revolutionary Guards’ secret service said it had analyzed the “enemy’s vulnerable points” and was preparing a new wave of attacks “with new strategies and more modern systems.”
According to the Israeli military, there were rocket attacks from Iran on Israel during the night and in the morning. There were images of destruction but no reports of injuries. Iran once again used dangerous cluster munitions in the attack.
The Israeli army again attacked targets in Iran and Lebanon during the night. It said it had attacked facilities in Tehran that were linked to the production of ballistic missiles. Israeli ground troops also shot at several armed members of the pro-Iranian Hezbollah militia in southern Lebanon. A Hezbollah member was killed.
Because of the tense security situation, NATO recently relocated the personnel of an Iraq mission to Europe. This also affects German soldiers. According to the Bundeswehr, these are already back in Germany. However, around 200 soldiers remained in the region; they belong to a different mission. (sda/dpa)