High-resolution satellite images have laid bare the scale of destruction at Iran’s nuclear sites following Israeli airstrikes launched under Operation Rising Lion. The images, released by Maxar Technologies, show widespread structural damage at facilities long at the heart of Iran’s uranium enrichment efforts, a key flashpoint in the ongoing Israel-Iran conflict.The most severe damage appears to be at the Natanz nuclear site, southeast of Tehran, where an above-ground structure has been obliterated. According to the UN’s nuclear watchdog, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), this site plays a central role in Iran’s uranium enrichment programme. Iranian officials confirmed the strike, which was also analysed by the US-based Institute for Science and International Security (ISIS).ISIS noted “extensive” damage to the site’s power infrastructure, a critical component for the underground centrifuges that spin at high speeds to enrich uranium. A disruption in electricity could set back Iran’s programme significantly, though the long-term impact remains unclear.The IAEA has confirmed there’s no radiation leak so far, but chief Rafael Grossi issued a stern warning: “Nuclear facilities must never be attacked,” adding that such actions risk grave consequences “for the people of Iran, the region, and beyond.”Natanz has been targeted before. It was infamously hit by the Stuxnet cyberattack 15 years ago, and more recently by suspected sabotage in 2021. Much of the site is buried beneath Iran’s central plateau, precisely to make it harder to destroy from the air.Alongside Natanz, Israel also struck Iran’s Fordow and Isfahan nuclear facilities. While Iran claimed only minor damage at Fordow, a heavily fortified site buried deep beneath a mountain near Qum, analysts say it's too early to tell how the strikes may have affected uranium stockpiles, particularly those believed to be stored near Isfahan.Defending the strikes, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu insisted the operation was necessary to prevent Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons. “We will not let the world’s most dangerous regime get the world’s most dangerous weapons,” he said. Addressing the Iranian people directly, he added: “Our fight is not with you… but with the brutal dictatorship that has oppressed you for 46 years.”Netanyahu warned that if Iran succeeded in acquiring nuclear weapons, it could pass them on to its proxy groups, bringing the threat of nuclear terrorism to cities across Europe and possibly even the United States.