Israel PM Netanyahu and President Herzog visit Arad and Dimona to check damages: Read why Iran hitting towns near Negev desert nuclear facility is significant

Netanyahu visits Arad and Dimona, towns near Negev nuclear facility where Iranian missiles hit
Israel PM Netanyahu and President Herzog visit Arad and Dimona, images via Sidhant Sibal on X

 Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and President Isaac Herzog toured the southern towns of Arad and Dimona on March 22, 2026, inspecting sites that the Iranian missiles had hit earlier. At least two Iranian missiles had evaded Israel’s Iron Dome defences and slammed into residential zones near the sensitive Negev Nuclear Research Centre in Dimona.

Nearly 200 civilians were injured in the missile strikes, as per reports. 175 were treated at Soroka Medical Centre, including 11–36 in serious condition, children included. No deaths were reported. In Arad, multiple apartment buildings were heavily damaged. Multiple buildings have suffered damage in the attack.

Netanyahu reaffirmed his mission of destroying Iran’s military capabilities, terming the strikes an attempt at “mass murder” of civilians.

The missile hits on Arad and Dimona are significant because Dimona is home to the Shimon Peres Negev Nuclear Research Center, Israel’s primary, and undeclared, nuclear facility. Widely believed to be central to Israel’s nuclear weapons program, it includes a heavy-water reactor and plutonium reprocessing capabilities.

A day after the missile hit in Arad and Dimona, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) stated that no damage was reported at the nuclear facility.

The nuclear research centre is one of Israel’s most heavily guarded installations, located in the remote Negev Desert about 13 km  southeast of the town of Dimona itself. Arad is a smaller town roughly 30–40 km northeast of Dimona situated in the northern Negev. Arad serves as a supporting hub. It functions as a residential, logistical, and secondary military/technological node in the region. 

Iran hitting both Arad and Dimona, and more than Iran’s missile firing, the air defences failing to intercept the missiles, is a significant point in the ongoing war because of their critical proximity to the nerve centre of Israel’s nuclear program. 

Iran has stated that the strikes were retaliation for Israel’s targeting of Iran’s Natanz nuclear site. The March 22, 2026, strikes marked a rare failure of Israeli air defences in this heavily protected zone, signalling potential gaps and vulnerability of even the most advanced air defence systems when facing salvos of ballistic missiles.

Written by OpIndia Staff
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