Trump claims major military success in Iran, warns of further strikes

  Abu Sabet: President Trump on Saturday declared U.S. strikes on Iran’s key nuclear facilities were a “spectacular military success,” but warned in an address to the nation that he could order further action if Tehran does not agree to a satisfactory peace agreement. “Our objective was the destruction of Iran’s nuclear enrichment capacity and a stop to the nuclear threat posed by the world’s number one state sponsor of terror,” Trump said in remarks from the Cross Hall at the White House. “Tonight, I can report to the world that the strikes were a spectacular military success.” The president had announced hours earlier on Truth Social that the U.S. had bombed three Iranian nuclear facilities: Fordow, Natanz, and Esfahan. Trump, who was joined by Vice President Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth for his remarks, warned that Saturday’s strikes could be the first in a wave of actions against Iran, which has been locked in conflict with Israel for nearly two weeks. Trump delivered his address from the doorway of the East Room, with the grand foyer in the background, the same place former President Obama delivered his address to the nation announcing the killing of Osama Bin Laden. “This cannot continue. There will be either peace or there will be tragedy for Iran far greater than we have witnessed over the last eight days,” Trump said. “Remember, there are many targets left. Tonight’s was the most difficult of them all, by far, and perhaps the most lethal. But if peace does not come quickly we will go after those other targets with precision, speed and skill.” The post comes after Trump announced that the US had struck three key Iranian nuclear sites--Fordow, Natanz, and Esfahan--asserting that the operation, which involved a full payload of bombs on Fordow, was completed successfully with all US aircraft safely exiting Iranian airspace. The strike, part of a broader conflict between Iran and Israel, has marked the US's entry into the war with Iran. Earlier, Trump stated that the US has launched an attack on three nuclear sites in Iran. According to another post on Truth Social, Trump stated that the US had "successfully" hit three of Iran's key nuclear facilities--Fordow, Natanz, and Esfahan--with a "full payload of BOMBS" being dropped on Fordow as the primary target. "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 space. A full payload of BOMBS was dropped on the primary site, Fordow. All planes are safely on their way home," Trump stated. "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," he added. The underground site at Fordow and the larger Natanz plant were Iran's two primary uranium enrichment facilities, out of which Natanz had already been hit by Israel with smaller weapons earlier in the week, the New York Times reported. The third site, located near the historic city of Isfahan, is believed to store Iran's stockpile of near-weapons-grade enriched uranium. Earlier in the day, several US B-2 stealth bombers took off from the Whiteman Air Force Base in Missouri on Friday night (local time) and were seen heading West, CNN reported, citing flight tracking data. However, there is still no confirmation if the B-2 bombers were part of the attack on these nuclear sites. As of Saturday, the aircraft were flying over the Pacific Ocean and appeared to be en route to Guam, as reported by CNN. According to CNN, the B-2 bombers are uniquely equipped to carry the Massive Ordnance Penetrator -- a 30,000-pound "bunker buster" bomb believed to be the only weapon capable of targeting Iran's underground Fordow nuclear site. Each B-2 can carry two of these powerful bombs. The conflict between Israel and Iran entered its ninth day on Saturday, with the US now joining in support of Israel. The conflict started after Israel, on June 13, launched a massive airstrike on Iranian military and nuclear sites, dubbed "Operation Rising Lion." In response, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) launched a large-scale drone and missile operation, 'Operation True Promise 3', targeting Israeli fighter jet fuel production facilities and energy supply centres.   [Bangla Press is a global platform for free thought. It provides impartial news, analysis, and commentary for independent-minded individuals. Our goal is to bring about positive change, which is more important today than ever before.] BP/SM