Pentagon says deception, decoys and fighters helped protect US bombers that dropped 14 bunker-buster bombs.
President Trump specifically thanked God: "I want to thank everybody and in particular, God. I want to just say we love you, God, and we love our great military, protect them. God bless the Middle East, God bless Israel and God bless America."
(AP) - The U.S. military struck three sites in Iran early Sunday, inserting itself into Israel’s effort to decapitating Iran's nuclear program in a risky gambit to weaken a longtime foe amid Tehran’s threat of reprisals that could spark a wider regional conflict.
The decision to directly involve the U.S. comes after more than a week of strikes by Israel on Iran that have moved to systematically eradicate the country’s air defenses and offensive missile capabilities, while damaging its nuclear enrichment facilities.
Top US military officer says 3 Iranian nuclear sites sustained 'extremely severe damage and destruction.'
US defense chief says America doesn't 'seek war' and didn't target Iranian troops or people.
Pentagon says US bombing of Iranian nuclear facilities was 'not about regime change.'
Several close U.S. allies urged a return to the negotiating table in the wake of American strikes on Iran that fueled fears of a wider conflict, while noting the threat posed by Tehran’s nuclear program. Some countries and groups in the region, including those that support Iran, condemned the move while also urging de-escalation.
President Donald Trump announced the strikes. Iran’s state-run IRNA news agency reported that attacks targeted the country’s Fordo, Isfahan and Natanz nuclear sites. The agency did not elaborate. Iran's foreign minister said Iran reserves the right to retaliate.
Here is the latest:
Hegseth says US military used decoys and deception in Iran attack
U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth said Sunday that despite a surprise attack overnight on Iranian nuclear sites, America “does not seek war.”
Hegseth said it was important to note that U.S. strikes did not target Iranian troops or the Iranian people, a veiled effort to indicate to Iran that they don’t want retaliation on American targets in the region.
Hegseth said that a choice to move a number of B-2 bombers from their base in Missouri earlier Saturday was meant to be a decoy to throw off Iranians.
He added that the U.S. used other methods of deception as well, deploying fighters to protect the B-2 bombers that dropped 14 bunker-buster bombs on Iran’s most powerful nuclear site. He said that all of these tactics helped the U.S. drop the bombs without tipping off Iran’s fighter jets or its air missile systems.
Iranian president condemns US strikes
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian on Sunday condemned the U.S. attacks on three Iranian nuclear sites.
“This aggression showed that the United States is the primary instigator of the Zionist regime’s hostile actions against the Islamic Republic of Iran,” Pezeshkian said Sunday. “Although they initially tried to deny their role, after our armed forces’ decisive and deterrent response and the Zionist regime’s clear incapacity, they were inevitably forced to enter the field themselves.”
Pezeshkian urged the public to come together in the face of the attacks from Israel and the U.S.
Explosions heard in Bushehr, home to Iran's only nuclear plant
Explosions boomed Sunday afternoon in the Iranian port city of Bushehr, three semiofficial Iranian media outlets reported. It was not immediately clear what caused the blasts.
Bushehr is home to Iran’s only nuclear power plant, which is run with Russian assistance. Iranian authorities have not reported any problem at the plant.
Meanwhile, explosions also struck the city of Yazd in central Iran, with some suggesting it came from Israeli airstrikes targeting a power plant and a military garrison.