WASHINGTON: President Donald Trump announced on Saturday that the US military has struck three key Iranian nuclear facilities—Fordow, Natanz, and Isfahan—marking a major escalation in the Middle East conflict.
The airstrikes, carried out using bunker-buster bombs and long-range cruise missiles, signify the United States’ direct entry into the war alongside Israel.
In a statement posted to Truth Social just before 8pm Washington time, Trump declared that Iran’s nuclear infrastructure had been “completely and fully obliterated.” He warned Tehran against retaliating, saying the US was prepared to strike again “with precision, speed and skill.”
“There will either be peace or there will be tragedy for Iran, far greater than we have witnessed over the last eight days,” Trump said during a national address from the White House.
The Atomic Energy Organization of Iran confirmed the strikes on the three nuclear facilities but maintained that operations would continue. It said radiation monitors had detected no contamination, and that surrounding communities faced no immediate danger.
This strike follows over a week of Israeli bombardments aimed at degrading Iran’s missile capabilities and weakening its air defenses. Israeli officials had previously indicated that only the US had the capability to destroy deeply buried nuclear sites like Fordow using the 30,000-pound GBU-57 Massive Ordnance Penetrator, deliverable only by American B-2 stealth bombers.
In a social media update, Trump claimed: “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.” Later, he called the moment “historic” and urged Iran to surrender to end the war.
Iran has not formally retaliated yet but had earlier warned of “irreparable damage” if the US became involved. Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and the Iranian Foreign Ministry had issued grave warnings against any American intervention.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu praised Trump’s decision, calling it a bold move that “will change history.” US media outlets reported that six bunker busters struck Fordow and up to 30 Tomahawk missiles hit Natanz and Isfahan.
The decision has drawn global concern. UN Secretary-General António Guterres expressed alarm at the “dangerous escalation,” warning of catastrophic consequences for civilians and the region.
Meanwhile, Iran’s allies have issued their own threats. Yemen’s Houthi rebels said they would resume attacks on US naval vessels in the Red Sea if American military involvement continued. The US began emergency evacuation flights from Israel amid fears of wider conflict. Israel also shut down its airspace indefinitely.
Trump, who once promised to keep America out of foreign entanglements, had spent months pursuing diplomacy with Tehran before pivoting to military action. His administration had reportedly delayed Israeli strikes in April and May in hopes of reaching a nuclear deal.
Critics within Trump’s own MAGA base have expressed concern about the shift from diplomacy to war. But Trump, in his latest messaging, made clear he would not tolerate any path that leads Iran closer to acquiring a nuclear weapon.
“We know exactly where the so-called ‘Supreme Leader’ is hiding,” Trump said in a provocative post. “We are not going to take him out—at least not for now.”
This military intervention comes seven years after Trump withdrew from the 2015 Iran nuclear deal, which he had derided as one of the worst diplomatic agreements ever signed.
