Very tempting, I must admit. However, the Israelis bombed the Iraqi nuclear power plant (sold to them by the French!) BEFORE it was fueled and operating.
The reactors in N. Korea and Iran are running, which means if we bomb them we create two more Chernobyls.
And the downside is?...
--Boris
Not likely. The ones in Iran use LWR technology. I think the NK one is also. Different accident evolutions. Even if you bomb them when they're running and take out the redundant safety systems, LWR accident sequences evolve more slowly (in credible cases) than the burnout-type accident of a graphite-moderated, water-cooled system. You'll get some local contamination and maybe limited downwind fallout if a large-scale meltdown occurs, but not the explosive energy release (non-nuclear) of a Chornobil event.
If those sites are nuked the "fuel" will just enhance the desired effect.
Wind direction is important though,
NK should be done when the wind is from the south.
Iran when it's from NNW.