From B-2 bombers to bunker busters: US weapons used in massive strike on Iran's nuclear facilities
The US has officially joined the Israel-Iran conflict, striking Iran's top nuclear sites in Fordow, Natanz, and Esfahan using advanced weapons like GBU-57 bunker busters, Tomahawk missiles, and B-2 bombers. Trump called the mission 'total obliteration,' but Iran denies major damage. Operation Midnight Hammer featured F-22s and F-35s flying cover. Here's a breakdown of the deadly American weapons used in the Iran strike.
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Hans India
28 minutes ago
- Hans India
The covert US strike that targeted Iran's nuclear core
In an unprecedented show of military precision, the United States carried out a high-stakes mission dubbed Operation Midnight Hammer, targeting three of Iran's most secure nuclear facilities using stealth bombers, cruise missiles, and an elaborate web of decoys. The 18-hour round-trip strike was launched from Whiteman Air Force Base in Missouri under complete secrecy at 12:01 AM EDT. Seven B-2 Spirit stealth bombers armed with GBU-57 "bunker buster" bombs took off silently, flying low across the Atlantic Ocean with minimal communications. Each bomber was accompanied by support aircraft, joining the formation in the Middle East to ensure the mission went undetected. The Pentagon revealed that another set of B-2s flew west toward the Pacific Ocean in a sophisticated diversion tactic, leading the world to believe the US was preparing for a separate offensive near Guam. This decoy mission was known only to a select group of top military planners and senior leadership, including President Donald Trump, Vice President JD Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, who monitored the mission from the White House Situation Room. At the heart of the strike was Iran's Fordo nuclear enrichment facility—deeply buried beneath a mountain, believed to be 80-90 meters (262-295 feet) underground. This target required the rarely used GBU-57 Massive Ordnance Penetrators (MOPs)—each capable of piercing over 18 meters (60 feet) of reinforced concrete or up to 61 meters (200 feet) of earth. The Pentagon confirmed that 14 MOPs were dropped across Fordo and a second facility at Natanz. In tandem, Tomahawk cruise missiles launched from a US Navy submarine in the Arabian Sea struck a third nuclear site near Isfahan—delivering a synchronized, multi-pronged offensive in under 30 minutes. Despite extensive radar systems in Iran, no air defenses fired during the operation. According to defense analysts, Israel's prior control over Iranian airspace may have paved the way for the bombers to operate unchallenged. While US officials hailed the mission as a tactical success and claimed the destruction of key nuclear capabilities, Iran has acknowledged the strikes but downplayed the extent of the damage. Experts say it could take weeks or even months to assess the true impact, especially given how deeply the facilities are fortified underground. In total, more than 125 US aircraft and 75 precision-guided munitions were used in the assault. The entire operation spanned multiple continents, required numerous mid-air refuelings, and remains a benchmark for modern stealth warfare. 'This was the kind of coordinated, complex military strike only the US could pull off,' said Dr. Stacie Pettyjohn, a defense expert at the Center for a New American Security. 'But whether it truly resets Iran's nuclear program remains to be seen.' The world now watches closely, as both Iran and the US weigh their next moves—militarily and diplomatically.
India Today
30 minutes ago
- India Today
Iran's retaliation against US strikes could come in next 48 hours: Report
Iran could launch retaliatory attacks against US forces in the Middle East within the next 48 hours, further escalating the conflict in the region following US airstrikes on Iranian nuclear facilities over the the Trump administration is continuing diplomatic efforts to prevent further conflict, two US officials, speaking on condition of anonymity to news agency Reuters, said intelligence assessments point to a heightened threat window in the next day or has vowed to defend itself after the US struck multiple targets, including components of its nuclear infrastructure, in what Washington described as a preemptive move to prevent an "unacceptable escalation" in the region. The strikes have prompted fears of a broader military conflict between the long-time President Donald Trump, who authorised the mission dubbed Operation Midnight Hammer, warned that any Iranian retaliation would be met with "a force far greater than that used in the weekend US attacks".In preemptive moves, General Dan Caine, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said that the US military has heightened protection measures for its troops in the region, including those stationed in Iraq and US maintains around 40,000 troops across the Middle East, many of whom operate high-value assets including air defence systems, fighter aircraft, and warships—all of which could be vulnerable in the event of a coordinated Iranian week, the Pentagon began repositioning some of those assets to reduce exposure. Among the moves was the moving out of aircraft from the sprawling Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar, which houses around 10,000 US personnel and serves as a strategic hub for operations across the its vows to retaliate, Tehran has so far refrained from attacking US positions or attempting to close the Strait of Hormuz, a vital waterway through which roughly a quarter of the world's oil shipments al-Rahim Mousavi, Chief of Staff of the Iranian Armed Forces, said the country will respond appropriately to the American aggression."Regardless of the damage caused to the three nuclear facilities, we will respond against the US simply because it attacked our country," Mousavi said.- EndsMust Watch
Mint
32 minutes ago
- Mint
Senate Readies Tax Bill for Vote With Holdouts Threatening Delay
(Bloomberg) -- President Donald Trump's tax-and-spending agenda is nearing a climactic vote in the Senate this week in the wake of air strikes on Iran, which risk embroiling the US in a prolonged Middle East conflict. Trump's $4.2 trillion tax-cut package, partially offset by social safety-net reductions, does not yet have the support it needs to pass the Senate. Fiscal hawks seeking to lower the bill's total price tag are at odds with Republicans worried about cuts to Medicaid health coverage for their constituents and phase-outs to green energy incentives that support jobs in their states. Finessing a deal to line up the votes will require focus — and a bit of arm-twisting — from Trump, who is juggling both a pivotal week for his domestic agenda alongside a highly uncertain situation in Iran following the US strikes. Trump on Sunday, as US officials and foreign leaders were still digesting what the attacks on Iranian nuclear sites will mean for Middle East stability, urged members of his party to swiftly pass the tax bill. 'Great unity in the Republican Party, perhaps unity like we have never seen before. Now let's get the Great, Big, Beautiful Bill done. Our Country is doing GREAT,' Trump said on social media. Senate Republicans plan to begin the multi-step process to vote on Trump's tax and spending cut bill mid-week, setting up final passage in the latter half of the week or over the weekend. That timeline would allow the House to vote on the latest version next week and meet Trump's goal of enacting his signature bill by July 4. Meeting that ambitious deadline will require senators to quickly negotiate resolutions to a series of thorny policy issues that have divided Republicans for weeks. Senate Majority Leader John Thune must balance demands by fiscal conservatives for deeper spending cuts with qualms from moderate Republicans concerned the bill goes too far in making people ineligible for Medicaid and cutting funding for rural hospitals. Renewable energy incentives continue to divide the party as well, with some conservatives pushing for a faster phase-out of tax breaks for wind, solar, nuclear, geothermal and hydrogen. Other senators are angling to keep the breaks in place for projects that have already begun. Senators will also find themselves in talks with some of their House counterparts over the state and local tax, or SALT, deduction. The Senate bill would keep the current $10,000 cap in place, while the House-passed version would raise it to $40,000. Several House members from high-tax states, including New York, New Jersey and California, have threatened to block the bill if it doesn't include a $40,000 SALT cap. The Senate has some negotiating room to increase the SALT cap. The bill, per Senate rules, can lose up to $1.5 trillion over a decade. But a new estimate from the non-partisan Joint Committee on Taxation, found the legislation only costs $441 billion over ten years — after deploying a budget gimmick that assumes the $3.8 trillion cost of extending Trump's first-term tax cuts cost nothing. Democrats are locked out of the deal-making, with Trump able to pass his agenda on Republican votes alone. But they have been able to use arcane Senate rules to successfully challenge and strike some provisions from the bill if the Senate parliamentarian declares the measures aren't sufficiently related to taxes, spending or the budget. The parliamentarian blocked a provision that would make it harder for judges to hold Trump administration officials in contempt for failing to abide by rulings. Democrats were able to eliminate measures that would curb some Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits. Provisions to strip funding from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and cut Federal Reserve employee salaries were also tossed out. Senate Parliamentarian Elizabeth MacDonough permitted Republicans to use the bill to pressure states not to regulate artificial intelligence by denying them funding for broadband Internet projects. That's a watered-down version of a House proposal that would have blocked states from issuing AI regulations. That plan drew bipartisan criticism for overstepping states' authority. Democrats are also seeking to remove the Section 899 'revenge tax' on companies domiciled in countries with 'unfair' tax regimes. That provision has stoked fears on Wall Street of capital flight from the US. That parliamentarian ruling could be released as soon as Monday. The tax bill is the core of Trump's economic agenda combined into a 'big, beautiful bill.' The Senate version makes permanent individual and business tax breaks enacted in 2017, while adding new breaks for tipped and overtime workers, seniors and car-buyers. The bill would allow hundreds of billions of dollars in new spending for the military, border patrol and immigration enforcement. To partly pay for the revenue losses, the bill imposes new work and cost-sharing requirements for Medicaid and food stamps while cutting aid to students. The measure would also avert a US payment default as soon as August by raising the debt ceiling by $5 trillion. More stories like this are available on
