US claims strikes on Iran's nuclear sites caused severe damage but full impact unclear
Jun 23, 2025 05:50 AM IST
The US military's strike on three sites in Iran raised urgent questions Sunday about what remains of Tehran's nuclear program and how its weakened military might respond. A combination picture shows satellite images over Fordow underground complex, before and after the U.S. struck the underground nuclear facility, near Qom, Iran, June 20, 2025 (L) and June 22, 2025.(Reuters)
The decision to directly involve the US comes after more than a week of strikes by Israel on Iran that have moved to systematically eradicate the country's air defenses and offensive missile capabilities, while damaging its nuclear enrichment facilities. Follow LIVE updates.
But U.S. and Israeli officials have said that American stealth bombers and a 30,000-pound (13,600-kilogram) bunker buster bomb they alone can carry offered the best chance of destroying heavily fortified sites connected to the Iranian nuclear program buried deep underground.
Also Read | US warns Iran against closing Strait of Hormuz: 'It's economic suicide'
'At this time, no one, including the (International Atomic Energy Agency), is in a position to assess the underground damage at Fordo,' said U.N. nuclear chief Rafael Grossi.
President Donald Trump announced the strikes. Iran's state-run IRNA news agency reported that attacks targeted the country's Fordo, Isfahan and Natanz nuclear sites. Iran's foreign minister said Iran reserves the right to retaliate.
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