IAEA confirms Iran's Khondab heavy water plant destroyed — no longer operational after March 27 strikes

The International Atomic Energy Agency announced that Iran's heavy water production plant at Khondab — which Iran said was attacked on March 27 — has suffered severe damage and is no longer operational. The IAEA added in a social media post that the installation contains no declared nuclear material. The Khondab heavy water production facility is associated with Iran's Arak IR-40 heavy water reactor complex — a key component of Iran's potential plutonium pathway to nuclear weapons. Heavy water (deuterium oxide) is used as a moderator in plutonium-producing reactors. The IR-40 reactor at Arak was modified under the 2015 JCPOA to reduce its weapons-relevant output, but the Khondab facility remained part of Iran's nuclear industrial infrastructure. The IAEA's confirmation of 'severe damage' and 'no longer operational' status is the first time the UN nuclear watchdog has officially declared an Iranian nuclear-linked facility destroyed during this conflict. The IAEA also noted the absence of declared nuclear material, providing assurance against a radiological release. The destruction of the Khondab facility represents a concrete setback to Iran's heavy water nuclear pathway.