Early Thursday, Iran launched a series of powerful missile strikes into Israel. One of the Iranian missiles directly hit the Soroka Medical Center, the largest hospital in southern Israel, located in the city of Be’er Sheva.
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The hospital reported “extensive damage” to several parts of the facility. Many people were wounded in the Iranian attack, and images shared by Israeli media showed shattered windows and thick black smoke rising from the site.
Soroka Medical Center, which has more than 1,000 beds, serves about one million people in the southern region. Following the attack, hospital staff urged residents not to visit the facility unless it was an absolute emergency due to the damage and safety concerns.
In Tel Aviv, an Iranian missile hit a high-rise apartment building. Other missile impacts were reported in central Israel. Magen David Adom, Israel’s emergency medical response organization, confirmed the attacks. It stated that these strikes wounded at least 40 people. Emergency workers transported the injured and inspected destroyed buildings in multiple locations.
Iran, through its state-run IRNA news agency, claimed that its missile was aimed at a military site in Israel, not civilian areas like the hospital. However, they also stated that the “blast wave” from the missile might have affected surrounding buildings, including Soroka Medical Center.
This wave of violence marked the seventh day of the conflict. Both countries exchanged powerful strikes with no signs of stopping. A day earlier, Iran’s supreme leader rejected U.S. calls to end the conflict. He warned that any American military action would cause “irreparable damage” to the U.S.
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Israel Targets Arak Nuclear Reactor Facility in Direct Response
In a swift response to the Iranian attacks, Israel launched its own airstrikes deep inside Iranian territory. One of the main targets was the Arak heavy water reactor, an important site in Iran’s nuclear program. According to the Israeli military, fighter jets hit the facility’s core seal. This is a vital part used in the production of plutonium. Israel said the goal was to stop the facility from being restored. They wanted to prevent its use in developing nuclear weapons.
Iranian state television later confirmed the strike and stated that officials had already evacuated the facility, claiming there was “no radiation danger whatsoever.”
The Arak reactor has been under international attention for years because of its potential to produce materials used in nuclear weapons. However, Iran has consistently stated that its nuclear program is for peaceful purposes only.
In addition to the Arak site, Israel said it carried out another strike near Natanz. Natanz is a well-known nuclear site in Iran. Experts believe the area contains facilities linked to uranium enrichment. They also connect it to other parts of Iran’s nuclear technology.
Iran enriches uranium up to 60% purity, which falls just below the 90% level needed to make nuclear weapons. No other non-nuclear weapons state in the world matches this level of enrichment.
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Regional Concerns and Casualty Reports Rise
As the attacks and counterattacks continued, casualties have sharply increased. A human rights group called Human Rights Activists, based in Washington, reported that Israeli airstrikes in Iran have so far killed at least 639 people and injured 1,329. Among the dead, the group identified 263 civilians and 154 members of Iranian security forces. The organization is known for verifying data by comparing local reports with its own network of sources inside Iran.
Iran, on the other hand, has not released regular casualty updates during the conflict. Their last official count came on Monday, reporting 224 deaths and 1,277 people injured. Iranian state media has been known in the past to minimize or delay casualty information during periods of conflict.
Meanwhile, other countries are now preparing to evacuate their citizens from both Iran and Israel as tensions rise. Japan announced that it is sending two C-2 military aircraft and 120 personnel to Djibouti, where Japan maintains a base. The mission aims to evacuate around 280 Japanese citizens from Iran and over 1,000 others in Israel if necessary.
The Chinese Embassy in Israel said it would begin evacuating Chinese nationals by bus through the Taba border crossing into Egypt starting Friday. Similarly, the Indonesian government also said it would remove its citizens from the region. Indonesia’s foreign ministry reported that about 386 Indonesian citizens, mostly students, are currently in Iran, while 194 Indonesians are in Israel.
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At the diplomatic level, Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty discussed the crisis in a call with officials from France and the U.K. Abdelatty emphasized the need for dialogue and compromise between Iran and Europe to help lower tensions.
Lastly, a U.S. official stated on Wednesday that Washington has no immediate plans to take part in ongoing nuclear talks between Iran and European powers in Geneva. However, the official hinted that this position could change depending on how the conflict develops.
