Tehran had previously vowed to strike back if the United States bombed the country—and America’s 40,000 military personnel in the region are now on extremely high alert.
Earlier this evening, the United States Air Force carried out coordinated airstrikes on three of Iran’s nuclear facilities, including its heavily defended Fordow site built deep inside a mountain. The strikes involved an undisclosed number of Northrop B-2 Spirit strategic bombers. Earlier in the day on Saturday, it was reported that several of the flying wing stealth aircraft had been deployed from Whiteman Air Force Base (AFB), Missouri, to the Indo-Pacific region.
The B-2 is the only aircraft certified to carry the 30,000-pound GBU-57 Massive Ordnance Penetrator (MOP), a so-called “bunker buster” bomb considered to be the only ordnance in any military arsenal capable of destroying Iran’s underground nuclear facilities.
In a post on Truth Social, President Donald Trump wrote, “We have completed our very successful attack on the three Nuclear sites in Iran, including Fordow, Natanz, and Esfahan. 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. Congratulations to our great American Warriors,” Trump added. “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.”
What We Know About Iran’s Nuclear Sites
The facilities at Fordow and Natanz were used to enrich uranium, while the site at Isfahan was reportedly created to house near-bomb-grade enriched uranium, according to The New York Times.
A recent report from CNBC indicated that the Fordow facility in northwest Iran is the country’s “most advanced and hardened nuclear facility.” It was likened to “a fortress,” as it is built inside a literal mountain located around 300 feet underground, reinforced with layers of concrete.
Though Israel carried out a massive strike on numerous Iranian facilities on June 13, employing more than 200 aircraft, the Israeli Air Force (IAF) lacks the capabilities to destroy Fordow—or likely even seriously disrupt its activities.
Although President Trump had indicated that a “full payload” had been dropped on Fordow, it remains unclear if the site was truly destroyed or not.
The GPS-guided warhead, developed by Boeing, is known to be able to penetrate about 200 feet below the surface before exploding. However, the Iranian facility is so hardened that one or even two might not be enough to get the job done. Moreover, the US Air Force likely has a small handful of such bombs in its arsenal.
Israeli Strikes Have Continued on Iran
While the United States hit three sites in Iran in the early hours of Sunday morning local time, Israel has continued to carry out a bombing campaign on the Islamic Republic. At least 400 people have been killed in Iran, and more than 3,000 have been injured.
Tehran has responded by launching missile strikes at Israel. The death toll from the retaliatory strikes was at 24 on Saturday.
Iran Could Strike at the United States Next
Tehran had previously vowed to strike back if the United States bombed the country. As recently as Friday, the Iranian-backed Houthi militants in Yemen, which reached a ceasefire with Washington last month, threatened to resume attacks on US Navy warships in the Red Sea if the United States became involved militarily against the Islamic Republic.
There are currently around 40,000 American military personnel in the Middle East, and they are now on extremely high alert.
This is a developing story.
About the Author: Peter Suciu
Peter Suciu has contributed over 3,200 published pieces to more than four dozen magazines and websites over a thirty-year career in journalism. He regularly writes about military hardware, firearms history, cybersecurity, politics, and international affairs. Peter is also a Contributing Writer for Forbes and Clearance Jobs. He is based in Michigan. You can follow him on Twitter: @PeterSuciu. You can email the author: [email protected].
Image: Shutterstock / anelo.
