The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) conducted its first inspection in 2003, revealing Iran’s nuclear activities. In 2006, the permanent members of the UN Security Council and Germany began talks. In 2015, the JCPOA was reached, under which Iran limited its uranium enrichment to just 3.67 percent, reduced its stockpile of enriched uranium, and allowed the IAEA to fully monitor its nuclear facilities. According to the IAEA, Iran demonstrated transparency until 2015. Then, when the United States withdrew from the deal in 2018, Iran gradually began to increase uranium enrichment and reached 60 percent after 2021.

The IAEA expressed doubts and complained of a lack of cooperation between 2021 and 2025. A new diplomatic process began in early 2025 to make it possible to revive the agreement. Five rounds of negotiations had been held in this regard, and the sixth round was to be held in Amman on June 13–15. On June 12, 2025, the IAEA reported that Iran was close to the nuclear breakout point. The next day, on June 13, Israel attacked Iran, killing six Iranian nuclear scientists, the head of the Iranian army, the head of the Revolutionary Guards, and the head of the Aerospace Force.
Previously, Iranian nuclear scientist Dr. Masoud Ali Mohammadi was killed in 2009, Dr. Majid Shahriari in 2010, Dariush Rezaei in 2011, and Mohsen Fakhrzadeh, the mastermind of Iran’s nuclear program, in 2020.
Iran has 6 major nuclear facilities in different cities, including Natanz and Fordow, which enrich uranium. Arak was a heavy water reactor that Israel attacked on June 19. Bushehr is Iran’s only nuclear power plant.

Isfahan has a uranium conversion center and Lashkar-e-Abad is a nuclear test site. There have been several cyber or other attacks on Iranian nuclear facilities. In 2010, the Stuxnet virus destroyed centrifuges at Natanz. In 2020, there was an explosion at Natanz that Tehran described as sabotage. Another attack in 2021 disrupted the electricity system. Iran has blamed Israel for the attacks. Since June 13, Israel has again targeted five of Iran’s nuclear facilities – Natanz,