U.N. Security Council split after strikes on Iran—s nuclear sites; IAEA convenes board

The United Nations Security Council met in an emergency session after U.S. military strikes hit the Fordow, Natanz and Isfahan nuclear sites in the Islamic Republic of Iran, prompting urgent appeals for de-escalation, technical inspections by the International Atomic Energy Agency and a sharply divided set of statements from Council members.

Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, speaking at the opening of the meeting, urged diplomacy and protection of civilians, saying "give peace a chance," and warned that the strikes risked "wider war, deeper human suffering, and serious damage to the international order." He called for immediate action to halt the fighting and return to negotiations.

IAEA Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi said the agency had convened a special session of the Board of Governors in Vienna for the following morning and urged that inspectors be allowed access to the struck sites once safety conditions permit. Grossi briefed the Council that, among Iran—s stockpiles, the agency accounts for "4,400 kilograms of enriched uranium at 60%" and that establishing the facts on the ground requires "only through IAEA inspections." He said craters were visible at Fordow and that damage appeared consistent with the use of ground-penetrating munitions at multiple sites.