Iran Says US Struck Areas Near Bushehr Nuclear Plant, Denies Damage To Facility

Last Updated:July 09, 2026, 5:53 PM IST

Iranian state media said shrapnel from US missiles fell on Iran’s only nuclear power plant in Bushehr province. Officials of the Islamic Republic deny any damage to the facility.

Iranian state-affiliated Mehr News agency said that Shrapnel from US missiles fell on the only nuclear power plant in Iran. (Image source: AFP)

The United States struck Iran’s only operating nuclear power plant in its Bushehr province, Iran’s state-affiliated Al Mehr News agency reported. However, earlier, the Governor of Bushehr, Arslan Zare, had denied any attacks on the facility.

The US, reportedly, attacked the nuclear power plant on Thursday noon. Visuals, posted on the microblogging site X by Al Mehr News, showed smoke billowing out of a nuclear power plant.

Shrapnel from the missiles, according to an Al Jazeera report, fell on the nuclear plant.

After the initial denials, Iran’s official mouthpiece IRNA, said that an official confirmed that the US shot missiles near the nuclear facility.

Ehsan Jahanian, a local official from Bushehr province, quoted by the state-run media, said that the US attack near the nuclear plant came around noon. He said that this attack happened hours after the US Central Command said that it had ceased its attacks on Iran.

The nuclear power plant in Bushehr is Iran only such facility. The plant began operations in the year 2011. It has the capacity to supply power to hundreds of thousands of households and at its peak seasonal output it can, reportedly, supply power to over 2 million households.

Though, it makes up only around 1 to 2 percent of Iran’s total power grid needs.

The United States has still not made any comments on the development. The recent uptick in hostilities between Iran and the US comes after Iran attacked three commercial ships, which included one owned by Qatar and another flagged for Saudi Arabia, which, the Islamic Republic accused of violating its orders of following the transit routes approved by it.

Iran has asked all vessels seeking a transit through the Strait of Hormuz to follow the northern route, which it controls. Whereas, there is another southern route, off the coast of Oman, which is controlled by the US.

Iran has sought to make it clear to everyone that the status quo in the strait before the US-Israel-Iran war will not be reestablished. Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Aragchhi said that the strait will now be under their control.

Read More