President Donald Trump confirmed Saturday that the United States launched airstrikes on three nuclear sites in Iran, marking the first time the US has directly targeted Iranian territory in this conflict and escalating tensions already boiling between Iran and Israel.
“We have completed our very successful attack on the three Nuclear sites in Iran, including Fordow, Natanz, and Esfahan,” Trump said in a social media post at 7:50 p.m. ET last night. “All planes are now outside of Iran’s airspace. 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,” Trump added.
Later that evening, Trump delivered a national address from the White House, standing alongside Vice President JD Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth. He declared the targeted nuclear enrichment facilities “completely and totally obliterated” and warned Iran against further aggression
“There will be either peace, or there will be tragedy for Iran far greater than we have witnessed over the last eight days,” Trump said. “Remember, there are many targets left.”He added, “If peace does not come quickly, we will go after those other targets with precision, speed and skill. Most of them can be taken out in a matter of minutes.”
Iran made it clear that it would retaliate if the US joined the Israeli assault, which began with airstrikes on Iranian nuclear sites and military targets on June 13. Iran has responded with missile and drone attacks on Israeli cities.
Trump later posted another statement online, vowing a severe response if Iran retaliates: “ANY RETALIATION BY IRAN AGAINST THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA WILL BE MET WITH FORCE FAR GREATER THAN WHAT WAS WITNESSED TONIGHT.”
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CBS News reports that the strikes started early Sunday local time, led by three US B-2 stealth bombers. Each one was loaded with GBU-57s—those massive ‘bunker buster’ bombs built to hit deeply buried targets like Fordow, which sits nearly 300 feet under a mountain and is heavily defended.”
Natanz and Isfahan were targeted by Tomahawk missiles launched from US submarines, but officials declined to specify how many missiles were fired.
The US reportedly signaled to Iran in advance that the strikes were limited in scope and not aimed at regime change. Earlier this week, US officials said Trump rejected an Israeli proposal to assassinate Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. However, not all US allies in the region were notified before the airstrikes began. Several were informed only after the aircraft was airborne, raising concerns among military partners who host US troops under US Central Command.
The White House informed CBS News that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was briefed before the strikes and subsequently spoke with Trump by phone. In a video address, Netanyahu praised the US action.
“President Trump and I often say peace through strength. First comes strength, then comes peace. And tonight, President Trump and the United States acted with a lot of strength,” he said.
Iran confirmed the bombings through its state media outlet, IRNA. Morteza Heidari, a spokesman for the crisis headquarters in Qom province, acknowledged damage at all three nuclear sites. Iran’s Atomic Energy Organization issued a statement confirming the attacks but insisted they would not stop its nuclear ambitions. The agency also urged the international community to condemn the US airstrikes.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi took to social media Sunday morning to accuse the US of violating the U.N. Charter. “Iran reserves all options to defend its sovereignty, interest and people,” he wrote.
In a follow-up post, Araghchi said diplomatic efforts had been deliberately undermined. “Last week, we were in negotiations with the US when Israel decided to blow up that diplomacy. This week, we held talks with the E3/EU when the US decided to blow up that diplomacy,” he said. “What conclusion would you draw?”
Homeland Security officials are now closely monitoring the threat landscape in the US, with concerns over possible physical or cyber reprisals by Iran now that Washington has crossed what Tehran has called a “red line.”