U.S. Hammers Iran at Midnight, Bombards 3 Main Nuclear Sites

Washington: The US carried out airstrikes on three nuclear sites in Iran overnight with B-2 stealth bombers delivering 30,000-pound bunker-buster bombs for the first time in combat, directly entering Israel's war with Tehran.

The operation, dubbed “Midnight Hammer” hit all targets including Fordow, a uranium-enrichment site buried deep under a mountain, according to US Air Force General Dan Caine, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. Natanz and Isfahan nuclear facilities were also struck with similar weapons and cruise missiles.

US President Donald Trump said Iran’s key nuclear enrichment facilities had been “totally obliterated” and warned of “far greater” attacks unless the Islamic Republic agreed to make peace.

The Pentagon described the extensive operation that included 125 aircraft overall, strikes by Tomahawk missiles launched from a US submarine, and the use of 14 Massive Ordnance Penetrator bombs.

Iran's Supreme National Security Council will take a final decision on whether to close the Strait of Hormuz following US bombing raids, Iran's Press TV said on Sunday.

Iranian officials said the attacks by Israel, now joined by the US, had left little room for diplomacy, arguing that negotiations are impossible while the country is under assault.

Tehran fired missiles at Israel in response but has so far stopped short of targeting American forces or assets in the region.

The Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps said it would continue targeting Israel in response and cited American bases in the region as a vulnerability for the US, without openly threatening them. Tehran's nuclear regulatory agency said there was no sign of radiation contamination and that it had taken precautions in anticipation of an attack.

The world awaited Iran’s response on Sunday after the US attacks. In an effort to avert all-out war with the US, it had yet to follow through on its main threats of retaliation against the United States itself - either by targeting U.S. bases or trying to choke off global oil supplies.

US Vice-President J.D. Vance said Washington was not at war with Iran but with its nuclear programme, adding this had been pushed back by a very long time due to the US intervention.

Satellite images following the attack appeared to show damage both to the mountain above the site and to entrances nearby.

Iranians described their fear at the prospect of an enlarged war involving the United States.

"Our future is dark. We have nowhere to go - it's like living in a horror movie," Bita, 36, a teacher from the central city of Kashan, said before the phone line was cut.

Much of Tehran, a capital city of 10 million people, has emptied out, with residents fleeing to the countryside to escape Israeli bombardment. Iranian authorities say over 400 people have been killed since Israel's attacks began, mostly civilians.

Americans must receive a response for their 'aggression', Iran's Pezeshkian told France's Macron on phone.

Meanwhile, the US State Department ordered the departure of family members and non-emergency US government personnel from Lebanon citing the volatile security situation in the region, a State Department notice emailed to U.S. citizens in Lebanon showed on Sunday.

The Organisation of Islamic Cooperation said on Sunday it would set up a ministerial contact group to establish regular contact with international and regional parties to support de-escalation efforts and "stop the aggression against Iran".

In a joint declaration following a meeting of OIC foreign ministers in Istanbul, the 57-member group condemned "the aggression of Israel" against Iran, stressing "the urgent need to stop Israeli attacks and their great concern regarding this dangerous escalation".

It made no mention of the overnight US strikes on Iran.

The US will likely have to put its troops on high alert. It has around 50,000 service members in the region, the bulk being in Kuwait, Qatar, Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates, Iraq and Saudi Arabia.

In Yemen, the Houthis, a militant group backed by Iran, issued fresh threats against US commercial and naval ships. Until a ceasefire in early May, the Houthis were regularly firing drones and missiles at Western vessels and warships in the southern Red Sea.

It’s also possible that Tehran opts to leave the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, according to Ali Vaez, the director of the International Crisis Group’s Iran Project and a long-time analyst of the country’s atomic programme.

Araghchi, the Iranian foreign minister, left the door open for such an eventuality, questioning the treaty’s effectiveness since it failed to “protect” Iran from attacks.