U.S. Airstrikes Cripple Iran’s Nuclear Sites, but Full Damage Unclear

The United States launched airstrikes on Iran’s key nuclear facilities Fordow, Natanz, and Isfahan early Sunday, intensifying its role in the Israel-Iran conflict, Iran’s state-run IRNA news agency reported. President Donald Trump hailed the strikes as a success, claiming the sites were “completely obliterated,” but Pentagon and White House officials noted that the full extent of the damage is still being assessed.

Satellite imagery from Reuters showed significant structural damage at Fordow near Qom, with U.S. forces deploying seven B-2 stealth bombers and over 30 Tomahawk missiles in Operation Midnight Hammer.

Iranian officials, including Atomic Energy Organization spokesman Behrouz Kamalvandi, insisted the sites and enriched uranium stockpiles were evacuated beforehand. An Iranian lawmaker told Al Jazeera that Fordow’s damage was superficial, while the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), led by Rafael Grossi, reported no radiation leaks but said underground damage at Fordow is unassessable. Iran’s nuclear authority reassured residents of no contamination risk, per the Iranian Broadcasting Corporation.

ALSO READ : Pentagon Reveals Details Of US Airstrikes On Iran’s Nuclear Sites In “Operation Midnight Hammer”

The strikes followed Israeli attacks that weakened Iran’s defenses, prompting Iran to fire ballistic missiles at Israel on Sunday, injuring 16. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi condemned the U.S. actions as a breach of international law, vowing retaliation, while President Masoud Pezeshkian accused the U.S. of crossing a “red line. The U.S. informed Iran post-strike that the attacks targeted only its nuclear program, not regime change.

Trump consulted Republican leaders like House Speaker Mike Johnson before the strikes, notifying some Democrats afterward, CNN noted. A U.S. official told The New York Times that Fordow was heavily damaged but not destroyed, with Iran’s uranium stockpiles possibly relocated. Bahrain urged diplomacy, while Yemen’s Houthi group called the strikes a “war’s beginning. The IAEA has yet to confirm Iran’s claim of a new enrichment site, and Western intelligence remains skeptical, per The New York Times, as fears of Middle East escalation grow.