In a daring military operation, the United States executed a large-scale airstrike on Iran’s nuclear facilities, including Fordow, Natanz, and Isfahan. The mission involved B-2A Spirit bombers and Tomahawk cruise missiles, marking the combat debut of the massive GBU-57 bunker busters. The strikes aimed to cripple Iran’s uranium enrichment and fuel production capabilities, targeting deeply buried and fortified sites.

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The arsenal: Massive Ordnance Penetrators and Tomahawk missiles

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The flight path: A 37-hour mission

Why these targets?

In a meticulously planned and unprecedented military operation, the United States on June 21 executed a large-scale airstrike on Iran’s nuclear infrastructure, targeting the highly fortified Fordow, Natanz, and Isfahan facilities, bypassing Iran’s dense air defense network, which includes older generation Russian-made surface-to-air missiles. The US strikes included the first-ever use of 30,000 pound (14,000 kilograms) GBU-57 Massive Ordnance Penetrator , also known as bunker busters, in combat.According to The New York Times and multiple defense sources, the US operation combined the stealth capabilities of six B-2A Spirit strategic bombers, each valued at roughly $2 billion, with the precision of submarine-launched Tomahawk cruise missiles . The bombers flew non-stop for 37 hours with multiple aerial refueling to cover the over 7000 miles (approx 11,400 kilometers) from the Missouri airbase to the target areas, marking a new chapter in the U.S. effort to halt Iran’s nuclear ambitions.The centerpiece of the airstrike was the deployment of 12 GBU-57A/B Massive Ordnance Penetrator (MOP) bunker-buster bombs, dropped exclusively by the B-2A Spirit bombers on the Fordow nuclear enrichment facility. Each MOP weighs approximately 30,000 pounds (13,600 kilograms) and is engineered to penetrate up to 200 feet of earth or 60 feet of reinforced concrete before detonating, making it one of the most powerful conventional bombs in the U.S. arsenal.The MOP’s warhead is encased in a high-performance steel alloy designed to maintain structural integrity upon impact, enabling it to destroy deeply buried and hardened targets that conventional munitions cannot reach.In addition to the MOPs, the Natanz and Isfahan sites were struck by a barrage of 30 submarine-launched BGM-109 Tomahawk cruise missiles, known for their precision and reliability.The Tomahawks were complemented by two additional GBU-57A/B MOPs dropped on Natanz, underscoring the strategic importance of that site in Iran’s nuclear program.The six B-2A Spirits, operated by the U.S. Air Force ’s 509th Bomb Wing, launched from Whiteman Air Force Base in Missouri on a mission lasting approximately 37 hours. The bombers refueled multiple times mid-air to cover the vast distance to Iran and back, demonstrating the B-2’s extraordinary range and endurance.The stealth design of the B-2, featuring radar-absorbing materials and a low radar cross-section comparable to a small bird, allowed the bombers to penetrate Iranian airspace undetected, evading sophisticated surface-to-air missile defenses protecting the Fordow site.Each B-2 bomber can carry up to two GBU-57 MOPs due to the bomb’s massive size, and the aircraft’s internal weapons bays are optimized for stealth and payload delivery. The B-2’s bat-like aerodynamic shape and advanced automation systems reduce pilot workload during such complex missions, enabling precise targeting of hardened underground facilities.Fordow: Built 300 feet beneath a mountain and shielded by Russian-supplied air defenses, Fordow is considered the crown jewel of Iran’s nuclear program. It houses approximately 1,000 centrifuges used for uranium enrichment and has long been a challenge for airstrike planners due to its depth and fortifications. The use of multiple MOPs aimed to obliterate this key site, which President Trump declared “gone” after the strikes.Natanz: Iran’s main uranium enrichment facility, Natanz, was targeted with a mix of Tomahawk missiles and two MOP bombs. The strikes focused on above-ground infrastructure and underground cascades of centrifuges, aiming to disrupt Iran’s uranium production capabilities.Isfahan: This site, involved in uranium conversion and fuel production, was hit primarily by Tomahawk missiles, damaging critical buildings but reportedly without radiological leakage.

IAEA says it has not detected any increase in radiation levels at key nuclear sites in Iran following the US air strikes.

President Donald Trump has announced that the United States forces struck three Iranian nuclear sites in a “very successful attack”, adding that the heavily fortified Fordow nuclear facility is “gone”.

Trump’s decision on Saturday to join Israel’s military campaign against Iran represents a major escalation of the conflict.

“We have completed our very successful attack on the three Nuclear sites in Iran, including Fordow, Natanz, and Isfahan,” Trump posted on Truth Social, adding that the military planes were now on their way home.

“NOW IS THE TIME FOR PEACE!” he added.

Later, in a televised Oval Office address that lasted just more than three minutes, Trump said Iran’s future held “either peace or tragedy”, and that there were many other targets that could be hit by the US military.

“Iran’s key nuclear enrichment facilities have been completely and totally obliterated,” Trump said.

In response, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi accused the US of breaching international law.

“The United States, a permanent member of the United Nations Security Council, has committed a grave violation of the UN Charter, international law and the NPT by attacking Iran’s peaceful nuclear installations,” Araghchi said in a social media post.

“The events this morning are outrageous and will have everlasting consequences. Each and every member of the UN must be alarmed over this extremely dangerous, lawless and criminal behavior.”

He added that Iran “reserves all options to defend its sovereignty, interest, and people”.

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CBS News reported that the US reached out to Iran diplomatically on Saturday to say the strikes were all it planned and that the US did not intend on regime change efforts.

The raid on the Iran nuclear sites was carried out by B-2 stealth bombers that dropped so-called “bunker buster bombs,” along with submarine-launched Tomahawk cruise missiles, US media reported.

The strikes came as Israel and Iran have been engaged in more than a week of aerial combat, with deaths and injuries in both countries.

Israel launched the attacks on Iran on June 13, saying that it wanted to remove any chance of Tehran developing nuclear weapons. Israel itself is widely assumed to have nuclear weapons, which it neither confirms nor denies.

Iran says its nuclear programme is for peaceful purposes only. Iranian officials have repeatedly said they do not plan to develop nuclear weapons but will pursue its right to nuclear energy and research.

Trita Parsi, executive vice president of the Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft, says there was “absolutely no evidence” that Iran was about to get a nuclear weapon.

“Neither was it existential, nor imminent,” he told Al Jazeera.

“We have to keep in mind the reality of the situation which is that two nuclear-equipped countries attacked a non-nuclear weapons state without having gotten attacked first. Israel was not attacked by Iran – it started that war; The United States was not attacked by Iran – it started this confrontation at this point.”

Parsi said the attacks on Iran “will send shockwaves” throughout the world because it will be very difficult for countries that risk ending up in the crosshairs of the US and Israel to feel that they are safe without having a nuclear deterrent.

“So I fear that we will see proliferation but I also think that this has more or less guarantee that Iran will be a nuclear weapons state in five to 10 years from now.”

‘No increase in radiation levels’

Iran’s nuclear agency on Sunday said radiation system data and field surveys do not show signs of contamination or danger to residents near the sites.

“Following the illegal US attack on the Fordow, Natanz, and Isfahan nuclear sites, field surveys and radiation systems data showed: No contamination recorded,” the organisation said in a social media post, adding that there was no danger to residents around.

Shortly after the attacks, the agency insisted its work would not stop.

“The Atomic Energy Organisation of Iran assures the great Iranian nation that despite the evil conspiracies of its enemies, with the efforts of thousands of its revolutionary and motivated scientists and experts, it will not allow the development of this national industry, which is the result of the blood of nuclear martyrs, to be stopped,” it said in a statement.

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Later on Sunday, the UN’s International Atomic Energy Agency said it had not detected any increase in radiation levels at key nuclear sites in Iran following US air strikes.

“Following attacks on three nuclear sites in Iran… the IAEA can confirm that no increase in off-site radiation levels has been reported as of this time,” the nuclear watchdog posted on X.

Parsi of the Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft, said it was likely Iran had taken precautionary actions ahead of the US attacks.

“It appears that they already had gotten an advanced warning – but I think also even short of that, when Trump that said he is going to make a decision within two weeks, I don’t think the Iranians took that seriously,” he told Al Jazeera.

“They understood that he was buying to try time while moving military assets in order to actually strike. So I think for some time they have moved those assets – where they are is unclear at this point.”

Parsi said Iran’s most valuable nuclear asset is its stockpile of enriched uranium.

“As long as they continue to have that, they still actually have very much a nuclear programme that still could be weaponised,” he added.

“And I think we are going to start hear from the Israelis in rather short order, that this was not the type of successful strike Trump has claimed but they are going to start making the case that there needs to be a more ongoing bombing campaign against Iran.”

‘Catastrophic consequences’

Al Jazeera correspondent Kimberly Halkett said Trump was advised that the bombings would allow for the dismantling of Iran’s nuclear programme.

“Donald Trump has been advised that, as commander-in-chief, this will not lead to escalation,” Halkett reported from Washington, DC. “But he knows there is a chance that there could be an escalation as a result of his action.”

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu praised Trump’s decision to attack Iran.

“Congratulations, President Trump. Your bold decision to target Iran’s nuclear facilities with the awesome and righteous might of the United States will change history,” Netanyahu said.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said he was “gravely alarmed” by the “dangerous escalation” of the US strikes.

“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.

At least 430 people have been killed and 3,500 injured in Iran since Israel began its attacks, Iranian state-run Nour News said, citing the Ministry of Health.

In Israel, 24 civilians have been killed by Iranian missile attacks, according to local authorities, in the worst direct conflict between the longtime enemies. More than 450 Iranian missiles have been fired towards Israel, according to the Israeli Prime Minister’s Office.

Israeli officials said that 1,272 people have been injured since the beginning of the hostilities, with 14 in serious condition.

Iran’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Sunday condemned the United States’ strikes on three of its nuclear sites, describing the operation as “savage military aggression” against its “peaceful nuclear facilities.”

“The Islamic Republic holds the warmongering and lawless #USA government fully responsible for the extremely dangerous consequences of this grave crime,” the foreign ministry stated, in part.

The statement accuses the U.S. of conducting the strikes in collusion with “the genocidal Zionist regime,” which is Israel.

“The U.S. assault on Iran’s peaceful nuclear facilities, committed in the early hours of the tenth day of Israel’s military aggression against Iran, has laid bare the criminal collaboration and direct participation of the United States with the Zionist regime in planning and executing military attacks against Iran,” the statement said.

The Iranian Foreign Ministry also called on the United Nations Security Council to condemn America’s aggression against Iran and to hold the U.S. accountable for violating “international norms and principles.”

Toward the end of the statement, Iran’s foreign ministry said the United States has “launched a dangerous war against Iran” and said it’s clear that America does not adhere to rules or ethics.

At least 11 people were hurt after Iran launched a barrage of missiles towards Israel hours after Tel Aviv’s closest ally – the US – struck three nuclear sites in Iran. Sirens were sounded and explosions were heard as the Iranian missiles hit parts of central and northern Israel, including Tel Aviv, Haifa, Nes Ziona and the Rishon Lezion area. Emergency personnel work at an impact site following a missile attack from Iran on Israel in Tel Aviv. (Source: Reuters)(REUTERS)

The Israeli military has identified missiles launched from Iran and are operating to intercept the threat.

Follow live updates.

According to news agency AFP, 30 missiles have been launched at Israel from Iran. The Ben Gurion International Airport was among sites targeted by Iran.

“These live images you are seeing are of a new salvo of Iranian missiles fired on the occupied territories,” said a presenter on air as the Iran state TV announced the fresh missile attack targeting Israel.

Some visuals going viral on social media purportedly showed destruction and damage in the Haifa city after the Iran strikes.

“Eleven people were taken to hospital, including one in moderate condition – a 30-year-old man wounded in the upper body by shrapnel,” AFP quoted Israel’s Magen David Adom rescue service.

US President Donald Trump on Sunday announced that the country had struck three nuclear sites – Fordow, Natanz, and Esfahan.

The US attack used bunker-buster bombs, known as the GBU-57 Massive Ordnance Penetrator, on Iran’s Fordo nuclear fuel enrichment plant. The bomb is currently delivered only by the B-2 stealth bomber, which is only found in the American arsenal.

In addition, US submarines launched about 30 Tomahawk missiles.

Ever since, the US had taken a strong stance against Iran, asking it to back down.

The White House had said that Trump was seeking additional time to deliberate on whether the US would step into the conflict and send in troops.

Amid radiation fears after the strikes on nuclear sites, Iran said there were no signs of radioactive contamination at the three locations and no danger to nearby residents.

The US military move came over a week after Israel launched strikes targeting nuclear and military sites, top generals, and scientists. Israel’s strikes were aimed at systematically eradicating Iran’s air defenses and offensive missile capabilities.

While Trump and Israel claim a threat from Iran saying it could assemble a nuclear weapon, Iran has maintained that its nuclear program is for peaceful purposes only.

U.S. President Donald Trump, accompanied by Vice President JD Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, confirmed that Iran’s key nuclear enrichment facilities have been “completely and totally obliterated,” in his address to the nation following the U.S. strikes on Iran.

Trump also thanked Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, saying that “they worked as a team.” He also thanked the Israeli military, and warned Iran: “There will be either peace or there will be tragedy for Iran, far greater than we have witnessed over the last eight days. Remember, there are many targets left.”

He continued, saying that “Tonight’s was the most difficult of them all, by far, and perhaps the most lethal, but if peace does not come quickly. We will go after those other targets with precision, speed and skill.”