UNITED States (US) President Donald Trump boasted of his country’s military after bombing three Iranian nuclear sites on Saturday.
In what came to many as a shock, Trump joined Israel’s onslaught against Iran despite repeatedly saying he would decide whether the US would join the conflict within two weeks.
He wrote on his Truth Social account shortly after the attack: “We have completed our very successful attack on the three nuclear sites in Iran, including Fordow, Natanz, and Esfahan.
“All planes are now outside of Iran air airspace. A full payload of bombs was dropped on the primary site, Fordow. All planes are safely on their way home. Congratulations to our great /American warriors. There is not another military in the world that could have done this. Now is the time for peace! Thank you for your attention to this matter.”
On Saturday, multiple US B-2 bombers appeared to be airborne and heading west from the US. B-2 bombers are the only aircraft that carry the larger bunker buster bombs.
Except for a ground assault or a nuclear strike, Iran’s underground uranium enrichment facility at Fordow is believed to be vulnerable only to American bunker-buster bombs.
Trump wrote further on his Truth Social that “There will be either peace or there will be tragedy for Iran. Remember, there are many targets left. Tonight was the most difficult of them all by far, and perhaps the most lethal.
“If peace doesn’t come quickly, we will go to those other targets with precision, speed and skill.”
US officials said that their country had between 40,000 and 50,000 troops stationed in the Middle Belt, who are expected to be put on high alert after the strikes.
Meanwhile, Israel’s Defence Ministry said it had elevated its state of alert further, cancelling all educational activities, gatherings and workplaces, except for essential sectors.
It expressed delight with the US involvement in the conflict.
The ICIR reports that Trump’s decision comes after more than a week of strikes by Israel on Iran that aimed to systematically weaken the country’s air defences and offensive military capabilities, while damaging its nuclear enrichment facilities.
Addressing the nation at the White House following the attack, Trump said that Iran “must now make peace” and that “if they do not, future attacks will be far greater and a lot easier.”
With his decision to bomb Iran’s nuclear facilities, Trump has broken his long-standing promise to steer clear of direct military involvement in major foreign conflicts.
In the days leading up to the bombing, Trump announced he wavered between issuing military threats and calling for renewed negotiations in a bid to pressure Iran into agreeing to dismantle its nuclear programme.
A senior White House official stated that once Trump became convinced that Tehran had no intention of pursuing a nuclear agreement, he concluded that launching the strikes was “the right thing to do.”
Trump gave the go-ahead once he was assured of a “high probability of success,” the official said.
The ICIR reports that this move represents the most significant foreign policy gamble for Trump, having avoided major international crises during his first term, Trump now finds himself deeply entangled in one just six months into his second term.
Possible retaliatory actions by Iran include shutting down the Strait of Hormuz, a critical global oil route, targeting US military bases and allies in the Middle East, intensifying missile attacks on Israel, and mobilising proxy groups against American and Israeli interests around the world.
A former Middle East negotiator who served under both Democratic and Republican administrations, Aaron David Miller, warned that such actions could spiral into a broader and longer-lasting conflict than Trump anticipated, reminiscent of the “forever wars” in Iraq and Afghanistan, which he once criticised as “stupid” and vowed never to repeat.
“The Iranians are seriously weakened and degraded in their military capabilities. But they have all sorts of asymmetric ways that they can respond… This is not going to end quickly,” Miller said.
Meanwhile, Iran has repeatedly denied building nuclear weapons, saying its programme was for purely peaceful purposes.
Nanji is an investigative journalist with the ICIR. She has years of experience in reporting and broadcasting human angle stories, gender inequalities, minority stories, and human rights issues.