President Donald Trump announced Saturday evening that the U.S. had dropped bombs on three major nuclear sites in Iran.
“We have completed our very successful attack on the three Nuclear sites in Iran, including Fordow, Natanz, and Esfahan,” the president posted on Truth Social. “All planes are now outside of Iran air space.”
“A full payload of BOMBS was dropped on the primary site, Fordow,” he added. “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 concluded.
Trump followed up this post with a note from Open Source Intel reporting that “Fordow is gone,” referring to a major Iranian nuclear development facility.
The president also announced that he will give an “Address to the Nation” at 10 p.m., regarding the “very successful military operation in Iran.”
He went on to say, “This is an HISTORIC MOMENT FOR THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, ISRAEL, AND THE WORLD. IRAN MUST NOW AGREE TO END THIS WAR. THANK YOU!”
While Iran has arguably been in a state of war against the United States since the 1979 revolution, and the regime has repeatedly condemned America as the “great Satan,” the bombing represents a new step in America’s stance against the Islamic Republic.
Under President Joe Biden, the U.S. relaxed sanctions on Iran, leading to an approximately $71.02 billion windfall for the Islamic Republic leading up to the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas attacks on Israel. Iran has long funded Hamas.
On that date, militants from Gaza entered Israel, slaughtering more than 1,200 Israelis and taking about 200 hostage.
Following these attacks, Israel bombed Gaza and launched an invasion to root out Hamas’ military capabilities. Iran’s other proxies in the Middle East attacked Israel, leading to military confrontations across the region. Israel’s forces neutered Iran’s strongest proxy force, Hezbollah in Lebanon.
Israel launched a series of airstrikes targeting Iran on June 13, focusing on nuclear and military sites. Iran struck back at Israel less than 24 hours later, sending missiles into Jerusalem and Tel Aviv.
President Trump had repeatedly urged Iran to negotiate and come to an agreement with Israel.
Iran said Friday that it rejected the White House’s invitation to hold nuclear talks.
Reza Pahlavi, the crown prince of Iran and the son of the ousted Shah, urged Persians to revolt against the regime last week, claiming that “the Islamic Republic has come to its end and is collapsing.”
President Trump celebrated the “spectacular success” of the strikes in a speech Sunday night. He announced that Iran’s nuclear enrichment sites had been “completely and totally obliterated.”
“Iran, the bully of the Middle East, must now make peace,” the president added. “If they do not, future attacks will be far greater, and much easier.”
“President Trump made a decision to defend the American people tonight by ending the Iranian nuclear program,” Kevin Roberts, the president of The Heritage Foundation, said in response to the attack. “What follows must not culminate in another regime-change quagmire. We learned that lesson in Iraq and President Trump was right to call out the failures of nation-building and military adventurism when running for president in 2016.”
“President Trump is now on the cusp of ending one of the longest conflicts the United States has ever faced—the unrelenting attacks Iran’s Ayatollahs have launched against Americans since 1979,” Victoria Roberts, vice president of Heritage’s Institute for National Security, said.
“This is not a time for nation building or a broader conflict,” she added. “President Trump—as commander-in-chief of the world’s most lethal military—has demonstrated that the United States has complete dominance over Iran. Now that Iran’s self-defeating dreams of nuclear military power have been decimated, we are closer to peace.”
This is a breaking news story. Check back for updates.
