The US strikes Iranian Nuclear Sites
On Sunday, June 22 Eastern Time, President Trump announced on social media that the US dropped fourteen bombs on three of Iran’s critical nuclear facilities, aiming to destroy Iran’s nuclear weapon development.
Trump announced that the US had used Northrop B-2 Spirit stealth bombers and submarines to drop a total of 14 “bunker-buster” bombs on three Iranian nuclear sites at 2am Sunday, June 22nd (Tehran Local Time). The US gave the code name Operation “Midnight Hammer” to the strikes, and they targeted the underground uranium facility at the mountain site Fordow, Iran’s largest uranium enrichment plant, and Natanz, and Isfahan, which hosts several establishments that produce reactor fuel and make uranium metal for the nuclear bomb. Fordow is a heavily guarded underground facility, while Isfahan is the suspected underground site for storing Iranian uranium. Trump said the attack’s objective was “the destruction of Iran’s nuclear enrichment capability,” with intentions to put an end to the Iranian nuclear project.
After the operation, Trump claimed it was “a spectacular military success,” and that “Iran’s key nuclear enrichment facilities have been completely and totally obliterated.”
During the speech Trump gave to the US, he urged Iran to make peace after the American bombardment, warning that otherwise “future attacks will be far greater and a lot easier.” This indicates that Trump viewed Iran as a bully and he expected Iran would just sign a peace treaty with the US and Israel. However, Trump’s expectations were not met. Instead of surrendering, Iran responded with a missile attack on US military bases in Iraq and Qatar on Monday.
The Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, responded to the US attack with words of congratulations to President Trump. Netanyahu showered Trump’s decision with compliments, and he claimed that “(the) United States will change history.” By now, Israel finally has the United States as an ally in its campaign against Iran.
Iran retaliated by launching several missiles at Tel Aviv, the second largest city in Israel, as the residents scurried to take shelter from the explosives. Israel has closed schools and forbidden meetings. Iran didn’t strike back at the US mainland primarily because it was too far to reach. Instead, Iran attacked several US command centers in the Middle East, including Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar where the US has stationed around 10 thousand troops. However, Trump said Iran had “a very weak response” and thanked the country’s leadership for giving “early notice” of the retaliation.
So far, the US strikes on Iran haven’t received much appreciation worldwide. United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres described the US attack on Iran as a “dangerous escalation in a region already on the edge,” and claimed this was a direct threat to international peace and security. The world hopes the Israel-Iran conflict will not drag even more countries in and won’t explode into the Third World War.
When nearly all wars, whether small or large, are thought to be endless, negotiation or recognition of an effective settling of accounts is not conclusive. The world now awaits with bated breath for Israel’s response to Iran.
Sources:
https://www.reuters.com/business/aerospace-defense/us-bombing-iran-started-with-fake-out-2025-06-22/
https://www.nytimes.com/2025/06/22/us/us-bomb-iran-nuclear-timeline.html
https://www.nytimes.com/2025/06/22/us/politics/trump-strikes-war-iran.html