US Airstrikes on Iran's Nuclear Sites: What We Know

Unprecedented US Attack on Iran

• 🚀 The U.S. launched "Operation Midnight Hammer," an unprecedented direct attack on Iran's nuclear infrastructure, severely damaging or destroying its largest nuclear sites.
• ✈️ Twelve B-2 bombers flew 30 hours with mid-air refueling, employing deception tactics to target nuclear enrichment sites at Natanz and Fordo, located hundreds of feet underground.
• 💥 For the first time in combat, the U.S. used 30,000-pound "massive ordnance penetrators" to strike deep underground.
• 🎯 A third target, Isfahan, believed to hold Iran's enriched uranium stockpile, was hit by submarine-launched Tomahawk missiles.

US Objectives and Iranian Response

• 🗣️ U.S. officials stated the mission was limited, designed to degrade Iran's nuclear weapons infrastructure and convince Iran to negotiate, not for regime change.
• 💬 Public and private messages were delivered to Iran, offering opportunities to return to the negotiating table.
• 🇮🇷 Iran's foreign minister declared the time for diplomacy was over and vowed retaliation.
• 💥 Iranian ballistic missiles struck Tel Aviv, wounding dozens, indicating potential escalation against Israel or U.S. bases in the region.

Impact on Iran's Nuclear Program

• 📉 Initial assessments indicate severe damage to the targeted sites.
• ⚠️ U.S. officials acknowledged that Iran's highly enriched uranium stockpile, held in a separate area, was not targeted and at least part of it survived.
• 💣 Some experts believe this event may push Iran towards weaponizing a nuclear bomb, a decision that could put "regime change back on the table" according to Secretary of State Rubio.
• 🚫 Despite extensive U.S. air operations, there was no evidence Iran fired any shots at the attacking aircraft.