Reverberations from Trump's decision to bomb Iran
Donald Trump's address to the nation announcing the US bombing of three Iranian nuclear facilities was unusually short and succinct for a normally verbose US president.
But Trump left wide open whether his declaration of the strike's 'spectacular military success' will be decisive or lead to more protracted, high-risk involvement in the Middle East for the US.

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Sydney Morning Herald
30 minutes ago
- Sydney Morning Herald
‘It's un-Australian': Rabbi says the hate must stop after graffiti attack on heritage-listed synagogue
Rabbi Shlomo Nathanson has described a graffiti attack on the historic synagogue in South Yarra on Sunday as 'un-Australian'. Vandals used red paint to scrawl 'Free Palestine' and 'Iran is Da Bomb', set inside the outline of a nuclear mushroom cloud, on the heritage-listed synagogue in the early afternoon. There were no religious services or activities at the synagogue at the time. The attacks were reported to police, and cleaners using special chemicals were able to remove most of the graffiti from the building near the corner of Toorak and St Kilda roads just south of the inner city. The attack came only hours after news broke that the US had dropped bombs on three Iranian nuclear facilities, but Nathanson urged those people angry about the current situation in the Middle East to not take it out on fellow Australians like those of his Melbourne Hebrew Congregation. 'Tensions are understandably very high today, but an act like this on the Melbourne Hebrew Congregation is just unacceptable,' Nathanson told this masthead on Sunday evening. 'It's the place of worship and it has been since 1841. It's one of the oldest congregations in mainland Australia. Over which time, it has welcomed people from all faiths.' Nathanson said police were called and security footage was passed on to them. He stressed that the synagogue would continue to serve its broad community of worshippers. 'There's going to be a wide variety of opinions as to the politics in the Middle East and where things stand from one extreme to the other, but to translate that into violent acts and antisemitism and criminal activity here in Australia is un-Australian,' Nathanson said.

The Age
31 minutes ago
- The Age
‘It's un-Australian': Rabbi says the hate must stop after graffiti attack on heritage-listed synagogue
Rabbi Shlomo Nathanson has described a graffiti attack on the historic Melbourne Synagogue on Sunday as 'un-Australian'. Vandals used red paint to scrawl 'Free Palestine' and 'Iran is Da Bomb', set inside the outline of a nuclear mushroom cloud, on the heritage-listed synagogue in the early afternoon. There were no religious services or activities at the synagogue at the time. The attacks were reported to police, and cleaners using special chemicals were able to remove most of the graffiti from the building near the corner of Toorak and St Kilda roads just south of the inner city. The attack came only hours after news broke that the US had dropped bombs on three Iranian nuclear facilities, but Nathanson urged those people angry about the current situation in the Middle East to not take it out on fellow Australians like those of his Melbourne Hebrew Congregation. 'Tensions are understandably very high today, but an act like this on the Melbourne Hebrew Congregation is just unacceptable,' Nathanson told this masthead on Sunday evening. 'It's the place of worship and it has been since 1841. It's one of the oldest congregations in mainland Australia. Over which time, it has welcomed people from all faiths.' Nathanson said police were called and security footage was passed on to them. He stressed that the synagogue would continue to serve its broad community of worshippers. 'There's going to be a wide variety of opinions as to the politics in the Middle East and where things stand from one extreme to the other, but to translate that into violent acts and antisemitism and criminal activity here in Australia is un-Australian,' Nathanson said.


7NEWS
33 minutes ago
- 7NEWS
B-2 bombers and ‘bunker buster' bombs used in US strikes on Iran
The United States has used its most elite stealth bombers and largest non-nuclear bombs in a massive coordinated strike on Iran's nuclear facilities. President Donald Trump confirmed the US had 'completed our very successful attack on the three nuclear sites in Iran', including Fordow, Natanz, and Esfahan on Saturday (Sunday AEST). Two sources familiar with the operation told CNN the United States used the GBU-57A/B Massive Ordnance Penetrator (MOP), also known as a 'bunker buster,' in its strikes. At least six B-2 Spirit bombers were deployed to attack Iran's deeply buried Fordow nuclear site, dropping the 1.3-ton MOP bomb, a US official told CNN. The official said a dozen MOP bombs were dropped on Fordow alone. The GBU-57A/B is a 30,000-pound (13,600kg) bomb is packed with 6000 pounds of explosives, designed specifically for 'reaching and destroying our adversaries' weapons of mass destruction located in well-protected facilities,' according to a US Air Force fact sheet. The bomb explodes twice — once on impact, and again up to 60 metres underground. The B-2 Spirit is the only aircraft capable of carrying the MOP. Is the US Air Force's most advanced stealth bomber, Separately, Navy submarines launched 30 Tomahawk Land Attack Missiles (TLAMs) at nuclear sites in Natanz and Isfahan, the US official said. A B-2 bomber also dropped two MOPs on Natanz, the official told CNN. The specifics of the strike were first reported by The New York Times. The B-2 is known for its flying wing design, radar-evading features and long-range capability. It can carry a 40,000-pound payload and costs around $2 billion per aircraft. Only 20 exist, all based at Whiteman Air Force Base in Missouri. Fordow, Natanz, and Isfahan are the backbone of the Iranian nuclear program, according to Western intelligence. Isfahan is a research base. It's believed Iran was working towards the final step of putting weapons grade nuclear material into a war head for a nuclear weapon. Natanz and Fordow are reportedly uranium enrichment facilities where centrifgues processed the radioavtice material. The Fordow site is buried more than 90 metres underground inside a mountain. Saturday's mission is believed to be the first operational use of the MOP bomb.