Tehran vows to strike Dimona nuclear site if regime change attempts persist

Tehran has announced that any attempt at regime change supported by Israel and the US will trigger a retaliatory strike against Israel’s nuclear reactor in the city of Dimona. The IRR-2, a heavy-water, natural uranium-fueled research reactor located in the Negev Desert and operational since 1964, is not subject to inspections by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).

Iranian sources speaking to the ISNA news agency alleged that the facility is utilized for the production of plutonium for nuclear weapons development. The Israeli government has issued neither confirmation nor denial regarding these claims.

Following statements by US President Donald Trump regarding the necessity of regime change within the country, a joint military operation launched by the US and Israel on February 28 resulted in the death of Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei.

The operation also resulted in the deaths of Mohammad Pakpour, Commander-in-Chief of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC); Ali Shamkhani, advisor to Khamenei and Chairman of the Iranian Defense Council; Abdolrahim Mousavi, Chief of Staff of the Iranian Armed Forces; and Aziz Nasirzadeh, Minister of Defense.

The state is currently being governed on an interim basis by a council comprising Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, Chief Justice Gholamhossein Mohseni-Ejei, and a member of the Guardian Council.

The responsibility of designating Khamenei’s successor lies with the Assembly of Experts, a body composed of 88 clerics. Mahmoud Rajabi, a member of the Assembly’s presiding board, announced on March 4 that the formal process to select a new leader has commenced.

According to sources cited by The New York Times, Mojtaba Khamenei, 56, is considered the primary candidate for the position. However, analysts suggest that publicizing his candidacy could render him a direct target for the US and Israel. Furthermore, experts warn that this appointment could incite internal unrest, given that hereditary succession is not widely favored among the Shiite clerical establishment.

Israeli Minister of Defense Israel Katz, addressing his country’s stance, emphasized that any leader in Tehran who continues the political trajectory of their predecessors will be considered a legitimate target for Israel.