TEHRAN DAILY - 22 MARCH 2026
Iran Strikes Israel's Dimona Nuclear Site After US-Israeli Hit Natanz; Trump Issues 48-Hour Ultimatum on Hormuz; IRGC Launches Waves 71-73; Tehran Denies Targeting Turkey, Oman, Diego Garcia
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Iran Strikes Israel Dimona Nuclear Site in Tit-for-Tat After Natanz Attack
Iranian missile directly hit building housing Dimona nuclear research facility causing damage and at least 117 wounded, AFP and Israeli media reported Saturday, after AEOI confirmed US-Israeli strike on Natanz enrichment complex same morning.
Trump Issues 48-Hour Ultimatum to Iran to Reopen Hormuz or Face Power Plant Obliteration
President Trump threatened Saturday to obliterate Iranian power plants if Tehran does not fully reopen Strait of Hormuz within 48 hours, dramatic escalation one day after signaling wind-down.
IRGC Announces Wave 73 of Operation True Promise 4 Against US-Israeli Targets
IRGC announced execution of Wave 73 of Operation True Promise 4 striking Israeli military industries and US bases in region, Nournews reported Saturday following earlier Wave 72 targeting Dimona and Arad.
Saudi Arabia Expels Iranian Military Attache and Four Embassy Staff Over Continued Attacks
Saudi Arabia declared five Iranian embassy staff including military attache persona non grata ordering departure within 24 hours Saturday citing continued Iranian attacks on Saudi territory, foreign ministry announced.
DRIVING THE DAY
SUMMARY: Iran executed a missile strike 21 March on Israel's Dimona facility—home to what analysts assess is Israel's nuclear weapons program—hours after US-Israeli forces struck Iran's Natanz uranium enrichment complex, marking the first direct tit-for-tat nuclear site exchange of the war. At least 160 people were wounded in the Dimona and Arad strikes after Israeli air defenses failed to intercept incoming projectiles. President Donald Trump threatened 22 March to "obliterate" Iran's power plants if Tehran does not fully reopen the Strait of Hormuz within 48 hours, despite saying 20 March the US is "getting very close to meeting its objectives" and considering "winding down" operations. The IRGC announced Waves 71, 72, and 73 of Operation True Promise 4 targeting US fighter jet hangars and fuel depots at Ali al-Salem Air Base in Kuwait and Al-Minhad Air Base in the UAE while continuing strikes on Israeli military industries. Iran denied responsibility for missile attacks on the Diego Garcia US-UK base in the Indian Ocean and rejected any targeting of Turkey or Oman, signaling effort to limit escalation with non-belligerent regional states. Saudi Arabia expelled Iran's military attache and four embassy staff 21 March, citing continued Iranian attacks on Saudi territory. END SUMMARY.
