President Donald Trump confirms that U.S. forces have bombed three key nuclear facilities in Iran: Fordow, Natanz, and Isfahan. Trump called the operations “very successful” and announced that all U.S. warplanes have safely exited Iranian airspace following the strikes.
This comes as the Israel-Iran conflict escalates, with Israeli forces continuing to strike military and nuclear targets across Iran.
- Earlier, Iran launched dozens of drones toward Israel, intensifying fears of a wider regional war.
Source: Al Jazeera
Iran’s atomic agency condemns attacks on Fordow, Natanz and Isfahan
- Three Iranian nuclear sites—Fordow, Natanz, and Isfahan—were hit in overnight US strikes.
- Iran’s Atomic Energy Organisation confirmed the attacks but reported no signs of nuclear contamination.
- Officials said nearby residents were not in danger and claimed precautions had been taken ahead of the strikes.
- Tehran condemned the attacks as violations of international law and criticised the IAEA’s silence.
- Iran blamed the US for escalating the conflict, suggesting the strikes were greenlit by Washington.
- While political and military reactions are still awaited, Iran warned US assets in the region may face retaliation.
Officials reiterated they are prepared for prolonged conflict, warning of possible regional war.
Source: Al Jazeera
We heard the US president’s justifications for launching the attacks on Iran.
But I don’t think it’s going to sit well with a lot of his critics, or a lot of his supporters, given the fact that he did not say anywhere that the US was under imminent threat, which would have made this legal under the US Constitution.
- Instead, the US president laid out the reasoning for taking these strikes, saying that Iran was the bully of the Middle East, and that they have been chanting, “Death to America”. But, I have to note here that this does not make Iran an imminent threat to the US.
Trump also said that a lot of people died as a result of Iran’s hate, but again, not specifying if those were Americans.
He also indicated that there are no other strikes that are planned currently, but threatened Iran that if it does not come back to the negotiating table, if it does not sign off on an agreement to end its nuclear programme, that there will be further attacks, and he says they will be far greater and a lot easier.
- Now, the other thing that the US president said is that the US has erased this threat to Israel. But he did not say, “this threat to the United States”. That is not going to sit well with a lot of Americans who believe that Israel has now dragged the US into a vulnerability that could result in a broader escalation in the Middle East, that could involve putting American troops at risk and drawing even further resources paid by the American taxpayers.
Source: Al Jazeera
Iran says ‘no danger’ to Iranians living near Fordow
The Crisis Management Headquarters in the province of Qom, where Fordow is located, has issued a statement saying that “there is no danger to the people of Qom and the surrounding area”.
- The statement, carried by the IRNA news agency, comes after Trump said Iran’s nuclear sites have been “obliterated”.
-
Earlier, another official said Fordow has “long been evacuated and has not suffered any irreversible damage”.
Iran official says Fordow ‘evacuated, has not suffered irreversible damage’
Mahdi Mohammadi, an adviser to Iran’s Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, says Iran had been anticipating the US attack on Fordow.
-
“The site has long been evacuated and has not suffered any irreversible damage in the attack,” Mohammadi wrote in a social media post.
-
“Two things are certain: First, knowledge cannot be bombed, and second, the gambler will lose this time.”
Source: Al Jazeera
Fordow ‘has not been seriously damaged’, says Iranian MP
- Manan Raisi, who represents the Qom area where Fordow is located, says the attack on the underground nuclear site was “superficial”.
-
“Based on accurate information, I state that contrary to the claims of the lying US president, the Fordow nuclear facility has not been seriously damaged and most of what was damaged was only on the ground, which can be restored,” Raisi said, according to Tasnim news agency.
He also echoed earlier assessments that there have been no detected leakage of radioactive material after the US strikes.
Source: Al Jazeera
Which sites has the US attacked in Iran?
Source: Al Jazeera
Israeli foreign minister heaps praise on Trump, Netanyahu
Gideon Saar says the US president “wrote his name in letters of gold in the history books” after his attack on Iran’s nuclear facilities.
Saar also credited Netanyahu for initiating the assault against Iran, lauding what he called the prime minister’s “extraordinary leadership”.
The comments from the US and Israel suggest that both governments have been in lockstep in their attacks on Iran, which critics say have been unprovoked.
Source: Al Jazeera
Netanyahu says there was ‘full coordination’ between the US and Israel
The Israeli prime minister says the US strikes on Iran fulfilled a “promise” he made to destroy Iran’s nuclear facilities when Israel first launched an unprovoked attack on that country more than one week ago.
- “A short time ago, in full coordination between me and President Trump, and in full operational coordination between the IDF [Israeli army] and the United States military, the United States attacked Iran’s three nuclear facilities: Fordow, Natanz, and Isfahan,” Netanyahu, who is wanted by the International Criminal Court over alleged war crimes in Gaza, said in a social media post.
- “In doing so, the United States continued, with greater intensity and with great force, the attacks of the IDF and the Mossad on Iran’s nuclear program. This program threatened our very existence and also endangered the peace of the entire world.”
Iranian officials have repeatedly said Iran does not plan to develop nuclear weapons but will pursue its right to nuclear energy and research.
Source: Al Jazeera
Header: A U.S. Air Force B-2 Spirit flying over the Pacific Ocean in 2016