US Military Strikes Iranian Nuclear Sites: Trump Orders Attacks Amid Israel Conflict. Fears of wider Middle East conflict escalate as Tehran accuses Washington of launching a "dangerous war" following attacks on Fordo, Isfahan, and Natanz nuclear facilities. President Trump's risky gambit to weaken Iran sparks international outrage and raises concerns of regional escalation
President Trump Announces Complete Destruction of Iranian Nuclear Sites Following US Military Strikes. In a White House address, President Trump declared the obliteration of key Iranian nuclear facilities after US military action targeting Fordo, Isfahan, and Natanz. This unprecedented attack, escalating the conflict between the US and Iran, prompted immediate condemnation from Tehran and raised concerns of wider regional conflict
Following US airstrikes on Iranian nuclear facilities, Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi declared an end to diplomacy, asserting Iran's right to self-defense after the US "crossed a very big red line." This escalation follows President Trump's announcement of attacks on key Iranian nuclear sites, raising fears of wider Middle East conflict
Following US airstrikes on Iranian nuclear facilities, a top Iranian official condemned the attack as an act of aggression. Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi blamed the Trump administration, stating its actions are solely responsible for the dangerous consequences and far-reaching implications of this escalation. His remarks, made in Turkey, represent the first official Iranian response to the strikes, raising serious concerns of wider regional conflict
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Iran Nuclear Sites Attacked: US Strikes Fordo, Isfahan, and Natanz. Despite attacks on its Fordo, Isfahan, and Natanz nuclear facilities, Iran vows to continue its nuclear program. Both Iran and the UN nuclear watchdog reported no immediate radioactive contamination following the US strikes
Post-US Airstrike Satellite Imagery Reveals Fordo Nuclear Facility Damage: Planet Labs PBC images, analyzed by the Associated Press, show damage to Iran's deeply buried Fordo nuclear facility following American strikes, with lingering smoke visible
Trump Authorizes US Strikes on Iran: Escalation Fears Rise Amidst Israel Conflict. Following nine days of conflict between Israel and Iran, President Trump ordered US airstrikes on three Iranian nuclear sites without congressional approval, sparking international calls for de-escalation. The unprecedented move risks wider conflict, with Iran vowing retaliation and threatening further escalation. The situation unfolds amidst Iran's support for Russia in the Ukraine war
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President Trump's June 21, 2025 Address: Iran Strikes & US Military Action. Watch the full speech: [link] #Trump #Iran #USMilitary #NuclearProgram #MiddleEast
US Strikes Iranian Nuclear Sites: Tehran Accuses Washington of Starting "Dangerous War" Following US military strikes targeting Iranian nuclear facilities, Iran's Foreign Ministry condemned the action as a betrayal of diplomacy and a dangerous escalation, accusing the U.S. of initiating a wider conflict. The attacks, in support of Israel, sparked fears of a regional war and prompted immediate Iranian retaliation threats
Iran retaliates against US strikes with 40 missile barrage targeting Israel, including the multi-warhead Khorramshahr-4. The attack caused significant damage in Tel Aviv, including a destroyed multi-story building and widespread destruction, leaving over 80 injured, mostly with minor injuries. This escalation follows US attacks on Iranian nuclear sites, raising fears of wider regional conflict
Israel retaliated swiftly against Iranian missile attacks, neutralizing launchers and launching counterstrikes targeting military infrastructure in western Iran
Trump Administration Launches Joint US-Israel Strike on Iranian Nuclear Sites
Iran's nuclear program: Peaceful intentions or imminent threat? While Iran insists its nuclear activities are solely for peaceful purposes, and US intelligence agencies concur, Trump and Israeli leaders have voiced concerns about Iran's potential to rapidly develop nuclear weapons, escalating tensions in the Middle East
The decision to directly involve the U.S. in the war comes after more than a week of strikes by Israel that significantly degraded Iran’s air defenses and offensive missile capabilities, and damaged its nuclear enrichment facilities.
But U.S. and Israeli officials have said American B-2 stealth bombers and the 30,000-pound (13,500-kilogram) bunker-buster bomb that only they have been configured to carry offered the best chance of destroying heavily fortified sites connected to the Iranian nuclear program buried deep underground.
The attack on Fordo did employ bunker-buster bombs, a U.S. official said.
In addition, U.S. submarines launched about 30 Tomahawk missiles, according to another U.S. official. The two spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss military operations.
Trump appears to have made the calculation — at the prodding of Israeli officials and many Republican lawmakers — that Israel’s operation had softened the ground and presented a perhaps unparalleled opportunity to set back Iran’s nuclear program, perhaps permanently.
“We have completed our very successful attack on the three Nuclear sites in Iran, including Fordow, Natanz, and Esfahan,” Trump said in a post on social media, using common alternate spellings for two of the sites. “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.”
Trump added in a later post: “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!”
The White House and Pentagon did not immediately elaborate on the operation. U.S. military leaders are scheduled to provide a briefing at 8 a.m. Eastern.
The International Atomic Energy Agency wrote on X that there has been “no increase in off-site radiation levels” after the strikes but that it would continue to monitor the situation.
Trump’s turn to strikes departs from some previous statements
The decision to attack was a risky one for Trump, who won the White House partially on the promise of keeping America out of costly foreign conflicts and scoffed at the value of American interventionism.
But Trump also vowed that he would not allow Iran to obtain a nuclear weapon, and he had initially hoped that the threat of force would bring the country’s leaders to give up its nuclear program peacefully.
For months, Trump said he was dedicated to a diplomatic push to persuade Iran to give up its nuclear ambitions. And he twice — in April and again in late May — persuaded Netanyahu to hold off on military action against Iran and give diplomacy more time.
After Israel began striking Iran, Trump went from publicly expressing hope that the moment could be a “second chance” for Iran to make a deal to delivering explicit threats on Khamenei and making calls for Tehran’s unconditional surrender.
He has bristled at criticism from some supporters who have suggested that further U.S. involvement would be a betrayal to those who were drawn to his promise to end U.S. involvement in expensive and endless wars.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu praised Trump’s decision to attack in a video message directed at the American president.
“Your bold decision to target Iran’s nuclear facilities, with the awesome and righteous might of the United States, will change history,” he said. Netanyahu said the U.S. “has done what no other country on earth could do.”
Fears of a broader war
U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called the strikes a “dangerous escalation,” as world leaders began chiming in with calls for diplomacy.
“There is a growing risk that this conflict could rapidly get out of control — with catastrophic consequences for civilians, the region and the world,” he said in a statement.
Iranian-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen, who had threatened to resume attacks on U.S. vessels in the Red Sea if the Trump administration joined Israel’s military campaign, called on other Muslim nations to form “one front against the Zionist-American arrogance.”
Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei had warned the United States on Wednesday that strikes targeting the Islamic Republic will “result in irreparable damage for them.” And Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmail Baghaei declared “any American intervention would be a recipe for an all-out war in the region.”
The Israeli military said Saturday it was preparing for the possibility of a lengthy war, while Iran’s foreign minister warned before the U.S. attack that American military involvement “would be very, very dangerous for everyone.”
Israeli strikes on Iran have killed at least 865 people and wounded 3,396 others, according to the Washington-based group Human Rights Activists. The group said of those dead, it identified 363 civilians and 215 security force personnel.
Trump’s decision for direct U.S. military intervention comes after his administration made an unsuccessful two-month push — including with high-level, direct negotiations with the Iranians — aimed at persuading Tehran to curb its nuclear program.
During his previous administration, Trump pulled the U.S. unilaterally out of the 2015 nuclear deal with Iran, prompting Tehran to begin enriching uranium to higher levels and restrict the access of IAEA inspectors to its facilities.
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This story has been corrected to remove reference to damage to Fordo’s entryways.
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Madhani reported from Morristown, N.J. Associated Press writers Nasser Karimi, Mehdi Fattahi and Amir Vahdat in Iran; Julia Frankel in Jerusalem; Melanie Lidman in Tel Aviv; Lolita Baldor in Narragansett, Rhode Island; Samy Magdy in Cairo; and Farnoush Amiri in Dubai contributed to this story.
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