The United States has entered Israel’s war against Iran, as US warplanes dropped bombs on three nuclear sites in Iran on Saturday – President Donald Trump announced – bringing the US military directly into the war after days of uncertainty about whether the US would intervene.
“All planes are now outside of Iran air space,” he said in a post on social media, adding that a “full payload” of bombs had been dropped on Fordow, the heavily fortified underground facility in Iran that is critical to its nuclear programme. “All planes are safely on their way home.”
The three sites that Mr Trump said were hit on Saturday night included Iran’s two major uranium enrichment centres: the mountain facility at Fordow and a larger enrichment plant at Natanz, which Israel struck several days ago with smaller weapons. The third site, near the ancient city of Isfahan, is where Iran is believed to keep its near-bomb-grade enriched uranium, which inspectors observed just two weeks ago.
After a week of mixed signals, Mr Trump, who has long vowed to steer the US clear of overseas “forever wars”, authorised US forces to strike Iran’s most heavily fortified nuclear installation, deep underground. The goal, US and Israeli officials have said, is to prevent Iran from building a nuclear bomb.
A US official, speaking on condition of anonymity given the sensitive nature of the information, said that multiple B-2 bombers had carried out the strikes.
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Three senior Iranian officials, speaking on condition of anonymity because they were not authorised to speak publicly, said that they believed US forces had bombed Fordow and Natanz at about 2.30am local time in Iran.
For days, Mr Trump had been weighing whether to provide Israel with the powerful munitions needed to destroy the facility at Fordow. Only US bombs known as bunker busters are believed to be capable of the destructive force required, and only US aircraft can deliver them.
Israel and Iran, sworn enemies for decades, have been exchanging attacks since June 13th, when the Israelis launched a surprise assault that targeted Iranian infrastructure, including nuclear installations, and military leaders. Israeli prime minister Binyamin 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 programme.
Just days ago, the Trump administration appeared intent on distancing itself from the conflict. “We are not involved in strikes against Iran and our top priority is protecting American forces in the region,” US secretary of state Marco Rubio had declared.
But Mr Trump, when he was not urging peace talks, began sounding increasingly belligerent.
On Tuesday, he went so far as to make a direct threat against Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, saying that “we know exactly where” he is and calling him “an easy target”. He said, “We are not going to take him out (kill!), at least for now.” But he warned, “Our patience is growing thin.”
Mr Trump also called for Iran’s “complete surrender”.
In what was considered a sign that the US government was nearing a decision, Mr Trump cut short his attendance on Monday at the G7 summit in Alberta, Canada, and flew back to Washington – surprising US allies assembled for the meetings.
[ If Netanyahu wants regime change in Iran, it is unlikely to end wellOpens in new window ]
“Much was accomplished, but because of what’s going on in the Middle East, President Trump will be leaving tonight after dinner with heads of state,” White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said in a statement. – This article originally appeared in The New York Times.
