TAMPA, Fla. — The Tampa Bay Area boasts a substantial military community, with MacDill Air Force Base located in South Tampa. That is also the headquarters of CENTCOM which is responsible for operations in the Middle East.

The U.S. military base in Qatar that Iran attacked on Monday is under the command of CENTCOM or U.S. Central Command, which is housed at MacDill Air Force Base.

WATCH: Tampa’s MacDill Air Force Base played key role on airstrikes on Iran, retaliation was expected

Tampa’s MacDill Air Force Base played key role on airstrikes on Iran, retaliation was expected

According to the Department of Defense, CENTCOM was directly involved in the U.S. airstrikes on Iran over the weekend.

Al Udeid Air Base is the largest U.S. military base in the Middle East. Ten thousand troops are estimated to be stationed there.

Iran launched missile attacks on the base, retaliating for the American bombing of three nuclear sites in Iran on Saturday.

Retired U.S. Army Colonel DJ Reyes said the command center from MacDill played a key role in U.S. military strikes in Iran.

Reyes adds that this retaliatory attack was not a surprise.

“We expected this retaliatory attack via their missiles. But their missiles, unlike our missiles, do not have global reach. It’s more regional in nature. The other way they can attack us is through asymmetrical warfare, and one of the more common forms is cyber, so we have to be very mindful of that,” Reyes said.

Reyes said the U.S. should also be mindful of proxies like Hamas, which Iran uses as part of their combat power.

Iran said the attack matched the number of bombs dropped by the United States on Iranian nuclear sites. Iran also said it targeted the base because it was outside of populated areas.

U.S. officials have reported no casualties.

The Brief The U.S. military carried out strikes on three nuclear sites in Iran over the weekend. Officials say U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) at MacDill Air Force Base in Tampa played a major role. If there’s additional military action in the Middle East, CENTCOM will likely continue to have significant involvement.

Military officials are shedding light on the role of U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) at MacDill Air Force Base in Tampa as the military carried out this weekend’s bombing of three nuclear sites in Iran.

Operation Midnight Hammer

The backstory:

The strikes carried out by American troops, dubbed Operation Midnight Hammer, came as the conflict between Israel and Iran continued to escalate in recent weeks.

President Donald Trump, U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Dan Caine have called the strikes a success, with Trump promising additional strikes if Iran retaliates.

Israel-Iran war: Trump talks regime change in Iran after US strikes

What is CENTCOM?

CENTCOM was established on Jan. 1, 1983, and oversees military operations in the Middle East.

PREVIOUS: 40 years of CENTCOM: How MacDill’s Central Command helped put Tampa on the map

CENTCOM’s role in operation

What they’re saying:

At a news conference at the Pentagon on Sunday, Caine outlined the mission, including how generals commanded the precision strikes from CENTCOM headquarters at MacDill.

“Last night on the president’s orders, U.S. Central Command, under the command of General Erik Kurilla, executed Operation Midnight Hammer, a deliberate and precise strike against three Iranian nuclear facilities,” Caine said. “This was a complex and high-risk mission carried out with exceptional skill and discipline by our joint force. I want to thank every service member, planner, operator that made this mission possible. Their actions reflect the highest standards of the United States Armed Forces.”

Pictured: U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM)

Dig deeper:

General Kurilla is a four-star Army general, and has been commander of CENTCOM since April 2022. He traveled to Israel in February to meet with the chief of the Israeli Defense Force and others to discuss how both countries’ militaries could work more closely.

The 18-hour flight into Iranian airspace required several refuelings, but it’s not clear whether any of MacDill’s refueling planes were used for the trip.

What’s next:

It’s also unclear if, or when, the U.S. could take more military action in the Middle East. It’s likely CENTCOM will continue playing a major role if that happens.

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Most of the planning and coordination for the Air Force’s strikes on nuclear sites in Iran was run out of Tampa.

When the initial bombing in Iran was announced, two of the first words Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth uttered were “CENTCOM” and “Tampa.” He was referring to U.S. Central Command, which is based at MacDill Air Force Base.

But many people don’t know what CENTCOM does.

ALSO READ: 4 things to know about the U.S. airstrikes on Iran

To help explain, WUSF spoke with Jim Cardoso, senior director of the Global and National Security Institute at the University of South Florida. He said CENTCOM directs military activities in the Middle East — and has done so for decades.

MacDill AFB was also the operational headquarters for much of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and the hunt for Osama bin Laden, the architect of 9/11. It gained national exposure in 1991 during the first Gulf War under the command of Gen. H. Norman Schwarzkopf.

WUSF: Tell us what the role of CENTCOM is and the area that it covers.

CARDOSO: U.S. Central Command is one of several what are called “geographic combatant commands” under the United States Department of Defense.

Each one of them is in charge of a certain region of the Earth, and so any type of military operation that takes place in that region, that geographic combatant command is responsible for planning and executing those operations.

Courtesy University of South Florida Jim Cardoso

Central Command is in charge of the Middle East. They actually have Egypt, the Middle East, parts of South Asia as well.

It encompasses what we call their area of responsibility. But basically any type of military operation that happens in that area, and that’s Iraq, Afghanistan, Israel, and now, obviously, most recently, Iran, that falls under U.S. Central Command, right here in Tampa.

How much of the planning and coordination of these attacks, like the bombing of the nuclear sites in Iran, was actually done here in Tampa?

Probably the vast majority of it. Central Command is going to have elements that are forward, stationed overseas — less now than there were at the height of the conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan. But there are still elements that are stationed overseas.

But the vast majority of the planning, you don’t have to be in the area to be able to just the the operation. So a lot of that is going to be done right here by planners, by intelligence, by operational experts and obviously by the leadership, with the four-star commander, Gen. (Erik) Kurilla here, overseeing all the operational planning and execution.

Does the general public really know much about this? If you talk to just the average person in Tampa, they would probably have no clue that a lot of the war planning and coordination is done right here.

Which continues to surprise me to a certain extent. Some people are very familiar. They know that MacDill is here, and they know that these two commands, there’s Special Operations Command and Central Command, and not exactly sure what they do, except one has to do with special operations. One has to do with the Middle East. And then some people just have, really, have no idea whatsoever. So it’s always good to educate people.

Do you have any idea why these two operations were based in Tampa? What’s the draw here? There was really no national security apparatus here before that.

I think a lot of it was historical things before the current combatant command structure really settled in.

The Middle East has always been turbulent. It’s always been dynamic. So for years before there was really formalized Central Command, there was a kind of a standing headquarters that the (Department of Defense) had to to deal with. And then I think it just sort of evolved from there, and really Central Command has grown.

I remember the first time I was in Tampa, was from 2001 to 2003, and then I returned in 2012, but even then, I could see that, just driving on base, Central Command had grown a lot more people.

But it would make sense after 9/11. After 9/11, it got supercharged with the amount of military operations going on at the same time. And most, if not all, of the planning and coordination for the Iraq War and maybe the hunt for (Osama) Bin Laden as well, after 9/11, was done right here at MacDill Air Force Base as well.

“There’s a lot that happens here in Tampa from a national security perspective. I think when people think of national security, to think of, oh, Washington, D.C., or and, yeah, OK, that’s, that’s our nation’s capital, and that’s the center of government. I got it, but there’s a lot that’s going on here in Tampa.” Jim Cardoso, USF Global and National Security Institute

And if this war widens, which it just may do, Tampa will be the nerve center of the war effort?

It will be. I think pretty much everybody hopes that it doesn’t widen. And you know, the actions that the U.S. has taken so far sent the right message. That then leads the discussions about what the next steps are.

But I have no question that Central Command is ready and willing and able to execute the orders of the national leadership for the United States.

Hopefully, it’s not a full-time war effort, but if they have a plan in place to be able to do that, if directed to do so.

(Editor’s note: After this interview, Israel and Iran accepted a ceasefire plan proposed by President Donald Trump.)

Is there anything else you want to mention about the role of MacDill?

There’s a lot that happens here in Tampa from a national security perspective.

I think when people think of national security, they think of, oh, Washington, D.C., and, yeah, OK, that’s our nation’s capital, and that’s the center of government. I got it, but there’s a lot that’s going on here in Tampa.

And I think it’s something that, to me, it really shows how Tampa is not just a growing city — which it is — but it’s a growing center of technology, of innovation, of entrepreneurship, but also national security.

Things happen here that are important on the world stage. It’s not just pretty beaches and nice weather in the winter, although that’s good to make, no mistake. So it’s a good place to be right now when the world’s a very busy place.

FLORIDA — After the United States carried out airstrikes in Iran on Saturday, some Florida lawmakers weighed in on the military action.

President Donald Trump announced that the U.S. had successfully struck three nuclear facilities: Fordow, Natanz, and Isfahan.

“The strikes were a spectacular military success. Iran’s key nuclear enrichment facilities have been completely and totally obliterated,” said President Trump. “Iran, the bully of the Middle East, must now make peace. If they do not, future attacks will be far greater and a lot easier.”

WATCH: Florida lawmakers weigh in on U.S. airstrikes on Iran

Florida lawmakers weigh in on U.S. airstrikes on Iran

Florida lawmakers posted their thoughts through X.

Republican Congressman Rick Scott said, “The United States and the world are a safer place without Iran possessing a nuclear weapon.”

And, Republican Representative Anna Paulina Luna said, “May God protect and keep our brave service members until they return home safely as well as our many foreign service officers and the many men and women at the State Department.”

Democrats have also responded.

State Representative Maxwell Alejandro Frost said, “This is an escalation that will lead to more death. Congress must reconvene immediately to stop the President from pushing us into war.”

Meanwhile, Representative Debbie Wasserman Schultz said, “In the face of diplomatic failure, a window was opened that allowed these strikes to severely diminish Iran’s nuclear capabilities. Any offensive military action will require approval from Congress. The US must focus our efforts to protect our servicemembers, citizens, and diplomats abroad from retaliation.”

According to ABC News, U.S. Officials say B-2 bombers dropped a number of massive ordnance penetrator bombs known as bunker busters. Tomahawk missiles were also fired from a submarine.

Iran’s Foreign Minister called the attacks “Lawless and criminal” and added Iran reserves all options to defend its sovereignty, interests, and people. Iran did launch missiles towards Israel in retaliation afterwards, which were intercepted over Tel Aviv.

“We lost over a thousand people and hundreds of thousands throughout the Middle East and around the world have died as a direct result of their hate,” President Trump said. “I decided a long time ago that I would not let this happen. It will not continue.”

There are growing concerns of a wider regional conflict.

Possible refueling tankers from MacDill could have been involved. MacDill has the 6th air refueling wing, the KC-135 is the refueling tanker the B-2’s would use to cross the globe. MacDill also hosts the headquarters for Central and Special Operations Command. Retired U.S. Army Colonel DJ Reyes, who served more than 33 years in military intelligence and special operations, believes MacDill was involved.

The U.S. State Department is evacuating U.S. Diplomats and their families who wish to leave the region.