President Donald Trump said that the US military has carried out airstrikes on three nuclear sites in Iran, joining Israel's effort to decapitate the country's nuclear programme in a risky gambit to weaken a longtime foe amid Tehran's threat of reprisals that could spark a wider regional conflict. Trump said the American planes "completed a very successful attack" on Fordow, Natanz, and Esfahan nuclear sites in Iran. This marked the first direct involvement of the US military in the ongoing conflict alongside Israel.
The decision to involve the US directly follows after more than a week of Israeli strikes on Iran, aimed at systematically dismantling the country's air defenses and offensive missile systems, while also inflicting significant damage on its nuclear enrichment infrastructure.
'Now is time for peace'
In a post on Truth Social, Trump confirmed about the successful completion mission: "We have completed our very successful attack on the three Nuclear sites in Iran, including Fordow, Natanz, and Esfahan. All planes are now outside of Iran air space. A full payload of BOMBS was dropped on the primary site, Fordow. All planes are safely on their way home."
"Congratulations to our great American Warriors. There is not another military in the World that could have done this. NOW IS THE TIME FOR PEACE! Thank you for your attention to this matter," he added.
Trump added in a later post that he would address the national at 10:00 pm eastern time, writing, “This is an HISTORIC MOMENT FOR THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, ISRAEL, AND THE WORLD. IRAN MUST NOW AGREE TO END THIS WAR. THANK YOU!”
B2 bomber planes used to carry out the strikes?
Trump said that B-2 stealth bombers were deployed in the operation but did not disclose the specific types of bombs used. The White House and Pentagon have not yet provided further details about the mission.
However, US and Israeli officials have indicated that American stealth bombers, equipped with the exclusive 30,000-lb bunker-buster bombs are capable of reaching deeply buried nuclear facilities such as Fordow.
The strikes are a perilous decision for the US as Iran has pledged to retaliate if it joined the Israeli assault, and for Trump personally, having won the White House on the promise of keeping America out of costly foreign conflicts and scoffed at the value of American interventionism.
Iran has warned US against strikes
Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei warned on Wednesday the United States that strikes targeting the Islamic Republic will "result in irreparable damage for them". And Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmail Baghaei declared, "any American intervention would be a recipe for an all-out war in the region".
Trump has vowed that he would not allow Iran to obtain a nuclear weapon and he had initially hoped that the threat of force would bring the country's leaders to give up its nuclear programme peacefully.
The Israel-Iran conflict began with Israel's launch of "Operation Rising Lion," targeting Iran's nuclear and military installations, top generals, and nuclear scientists. Israel said that it acted upon concluding Tehran wason the verge of developing a nuclear weapon.
According to a Washington-based Iranian human rights group, at least 657 people have been killed in Iran so far, including 263 civilians, and more than 2,000 others have been injured. In retaliation, Iran has launched 450 missiles and 1,000 drones at Israel, resulting in at least 24 deaths.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has asserted that military operations inside Iran will continue "for as long as it takes" to eliminate what he described as the "existential threats" posed by Iran’s nuclear ambitions and its arsenal of ballistic missiles.