Iran has threatened to strike Israel’s nuclear reactor in Dimona if US and Israeli forces pursue regime change in Tehran, the semi-official ISNA news agency reported.
The warning was delivered by a senior Iranian official amid the ongoing conflict, which began with a joint US and Israeli military campaign aimed at degrading Iran’s ballistic missile capabilities and thwarting its nuclear program.
The facility referenced in the threat, the Shimon Peres Negev Nuclear Research Center near the southern city of Dimona, is widely believed to play a central role in Israel’s long-suspected nuclear weapons program, although Israel has never publicly acknowledged possessing nuclear capabilities.
The installation is considered one of the most heavily protected sites in the country and is defended by multiple layers of air defense systems.
While Israeli and US officials have emphasized the military objectives of the campaign, statements by political leaders have also appeared to encourage regime change inside Iran.
Although US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth told CNN, “This is not a so-called regime change war,” describing the conflict in terms of its operational goals, President Donald Trump addressed the Iranian public shortly after hostilities began and urged them to take control of their future.
“Now is the time to take control of your destiny,” President Trump said in a message directed at the Iranian people.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu also appealed to Iranians a day after the war began. Writing on X: “Do not miss this opportunity. This is an opportunity that comes only once in a generation.”
At a press conference on Wednesday, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt declared the Iranian government was destroyed. “Under the leadership of President Donald J Trump, the rogue Iranian terrorist regime is being absolutely crushed,” Leavitt said.
“47 years of tolerating and enabling the world’s leading state sponsor of terrorism are over,” she added. “Iran’s murderous terrorist leaders are paying for their crimes against America, and they’re paying in blood.”
