US strikes 3 Iranian nuclear sites, Trump announces

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In a major strike after midnight local time, U.S. B-2 stealth bombers targeted and destroyed three of Iran’s most fortified underground nuclear sites.

The mission followed reports of six B-2s taking off from Whiteman Air Force Base in Missouri around midnight. While initial chatter suggested the aircraft were headed west toward Guam, Fox News national security correspondent Jennifer Griffin noted the true flight path was likely east, directly toward Iran, in what appears to have been a calculated deception. 

A westbound route would have taken 30 hours, too long to match the strike’s timing. A direct eastern route is roughly 15 hours.

The Fordow complex, buried deep beneath a mountain near Qom and considered the crown jewel of Iran’s nuclear program, was the primary target. Griffin reported that multiple passes were likely needed to deliver two 30,000-pound bunker-buster bombs or Massive Ordnance Penetrators, into each of the site’s two known entrances. 

Each B-2 carries two such bombs. President Trump confirmed in a Truth Social post that a “full payload” was dropped on Fordow.

Natanz and Isfahan, both core to Iran’s uranium enrichment infrastructure, were also hit. Israeli aircraft had tried and failed to penetrate the underground Natanz facility earlier in the week, but U.S. bombers appear to have succeeded.

According to Griffin, Israeli forces spent the past week systematically degrading Iran’s air defenses and missile systems, taking out surface-to-air batteries, command targets, and missile launchers. Since June 12, Israel has eliminated dozens of senior Iranian military officials and more than half of Iran’s mobile ballistic missile capabilities, gaining what officials now describe as air superiority over Iranian skies.

The U.S. strike package included B-2 bombers escorted by F-22 and F-16 fighter jets, and supported by EA-18 Growler electronic warfare aircraft. U.S. Navy destroyers in the eastern Mediterranean also intercepted incoming missiles during the operation.

Roughly 300 U.S. troops remain on the ground inside Israel, operating THAAD and Patriot missile defense systems. Together with Israeli forces, they’ve been intercepting Iranian drones and missiles nightly.

Announced by Trump directly on Truth Social, this marks one of the most aggressive U.S. military strikes in the region in recent memory.