Trump claims success after bombing key Iran nuclear sites

The United States has entered Israel’s war against Iran.

American warplanes dropped bombs on three nuclear sites in Iran, bringing the US military directly into the war after days of uncertainty about whether President Donald Trump would intervene.

“Our objective was the destruction of Iran’s nuclear enrichment capacity and a stop to the nuclear threat posed by the world’s No 1 state sponsor of terror,” Trump said in an address to the nation from the White House on Saturday night.

Trump said American bombers had hit Iran’s two major uranium enrichment centers: the mountain facility at Fordo and a larger enrichment plant at Natanz, which Israel had struck several days ago with smaller weapons. A third site near the ancient city of Isfahan where Iran is believed to keep near-bomb-grade uranium was also bombed, he said.

He also threatened more action against Iran if it did not return to diplomatic efforts.

“Iran, the bully of the Middle East, must now make peace,” Trump said. “If they do not, future attacks will be far greater and a lot easier.”

Iranian officials confirmed that the three sites had been attacked. Three Iranian officials said that Fordo and Natanz had been bombed around 2:30 am local time Sunday.

The extent of the damage to the sites early Sunday was not clear. Trump asserted that the facilities were “completely and totally obliterated.” Iranian officials acknowledged the sites had been attacked but did not immediately describe the damage. A spokesperson for the Emergency Committee of Qom, a city near Fordo, said that enemy forces had bombed “parts of the Fordo nuclear facility,” according to the Tasnim news agency, which is affiliated with Iran’s Revolutionary Guard.

Iran, which has refrained so far from direct attacks on US troops and interests in the Middle East, has warned that American entry into war would bring retaliation, raising fears around the region about the danger of a widening war. What form that response would take is unclear. Analysts have also speculated that Iran could react by attacking US troops and bases in the region, or by accelerating its nuclear program — assuming the program survives US bombing.

After a week of mixed signals, Trump, who has long vowed to steer America clear of overseas “forever wars,” authorized US forces to strike Iran’s most heavily fortified nuclear installation, deep underground. The goal, American and Israeli officials have said, is to prevent Iran from building a nuclear bomb.

Israel and Iran, sworn enemies for decades, have been exchanging attacks since June 13, when the Israelis launched a surprise assault that targeted Iranian infrastructure, including nuclear installations, and military leaders. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said his nation had no choice but to act if it wanted to stave off a nuclear “holocaust.”

Iran responded with missile barrages of its own, as well as offers to resume negotiations over its nuclear development program.

After the US strikes, Netanyahu praised Trump in a video statement, saying he had “acted to deny the world’s most dangerous regime the world’s most dangerous weapons.”

Here is what else to know:

• What’s next? Now that Trump has sent American bombers to help Israel destroy a uranium enrichment facility in Iran, it will most likely initiate a more dangerous phase in the war.

• Saturday strikes: Israel launched a wave of airstrikes against missile sites, a nuclear facility and munitions storage sites in Iran, while Iran fired a barrage of ballistic missiles and launched drones into Israel.

• Evacuations: The US State Department has begun evacuating Americans from Israel, US Ambassador Mike Huckabee said. In a post on social media, he encouraged Americans in Israel and the West Bank to fill out a form requesting evacuation, which could be by cruise ship, commercial flight, charter flight or a flight operated by the US government.