47 injured as Iranian missile hits Israel’s Dimona, home to its nuclear reactor and known as ‘Little India’

At least 47 people were injured on Saturday evening after an Iranian missile hit the southern Israeli town of Dimona, famous for the dome-shaped structure above its nuclear center and popularly known as “little India”, rescue services said.

Officials from Magen David Adom (MDA) rescue services and local residents told PTI that among the injured was a 12-year-old boy whose condition was serious after being hit by shrapnel.

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It was stated that a woman in her 30s was moderately injured due to broken glass, and 31 people were slightly injured due to shrapnel or were injured by falling while running to shelters. Approximately 14 people were treated for acute anxiety at Soroka Hospital in Beersheba.

“The missile fell on a community building and nearby old houses collapsed from the impact. Most of the people were in shelters, so they were not injured too much, except for the young boy who was left outside,” a resident of the area told PTI.

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said it was investigating the failure to stop Iran’s ballistic missile. The Israeli military said its air defenses attacked the ballistic missile but interceptors failed to shoot it down.
It was stated that “the incident will be investigated”.
The UN nuclear watchdog IAEA called for “maximum military restraint” following the attack.
“The IAEA is aware of reports of an incident involving a missile strike in Dimona, Israel, and has received no indication of damage at the nuclear research center Negev,” the IAEA said in a post on channel X. he said.

Iran said it targeted Dimona as a “response” to an earlier attack on the Natanz nuclear enrichment site. However, the IDF said it was not responsible for the attack on Natanz earlier in the day.

Dimona has a large Indo-Jewish population, and community members, mostly from the state of Maharashtra, maintain strong ties with India and make ongoing efforts to solidify them. This situation earned the city the nickname “Little India”.

Hindi shops are scattered all over the town and the voice of Marathi can be heard everywhere; The 7,500-strong Indian community makes up about 30 percent of the town’s population. Cricket is popular in the town and the younger generation is quite familiar with local Indian snacks like ‘sonpapdi’, ‘gulab jamun’, ‘papri chaat’, ‘bhelpuri’ sold by many shops.