US attacks Iran: Targeted sites, Trump's objectives, reactions... What we know this Sunday

According to Donald Trump, aircraft struck three of Iran's main nuclear sites: Isfahan, Natanz, and Fordo, on which a "full payload of bombs" was dropped. Built in violation of UN resolutions, the underground facility at Fordo (center) was presented by Tehran as a high-level uranium enrichment plant capable of housing some 3,000 centrifuges.

The Natanz plant (center) is arguably the best-known of Iran's nuclear sites. Its existence was revealed in 2002. It comprises two buildings, one underground, the other above ground, for a total of nearly 70 centrifuge cascades—more than 10,000 of these machines used to enrich uranium. The Isfahan facility (center) is a conversion plant. It produces the gases needed for uranium enrichment.

A risk of contamination?

At the sites hit, Iran's nuclear safety authority stated that it had detected "no signs of contamination." "No increase in radiation levels has been reported" near these sites, also indicated the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), whose head, Rafael Grossi, announced an "emergency meeting" on Monday.

Donald Trump did not provide details on the weapons used to strike the Iranian program. But given Fordo's underground configuration, GBU-57 bunker-buster bombs were likely dropped. These 13-ton warheads can burrow up to 60 meters deep before exploding, according to the U.S. military. This distinguishes them from most missiles or other bombs, which detonate on impact. Experts say only the United States had the capability to destroy deeply buried Iranian sites like Fordo.

The only aircraft capable of carrying GBU-57s (two per plane) are the American B-2 Spirit stealth bombers. Before Sunday's attack, flight tracking sites and the New York Times reported that several of these aircraft had departed the United States, heading west. The B-2 Spirits can fly 9,600 kilometers without refueling and are designed to "penetrate the enemy's most sophisticated defenses and threaten its most important and heavily defended targets," according to the U.S. military.

What response from Iran?

Iran, which denies it wants to acquire nuclear weapons and defends its right to a civilian nuclear program , has responded with waves of drone and ballistic missile attacks on Israeli territory, most of which were intercepted by defense systems. The Iranian news agency IRNA reported the firing of 40 missiles at Israel, where 16 people were injured by Israeli rescue workers and extensive damage was observed by journalists. In Ness Ziona, in central Israel, rescuers and soldiers were busy in a housing estate where at least one home was destroyed and others heavily damaged, according to images.

A similar scene unfolded in Ramat Aviv, a residential neighborhood of Tel Aviv, where images showed a succession of destroyed houses. Iranian armed forces said they had targeted Ben Gurion International Airport, near Tel Aviv, in particular. They spoke of the use "for the first time" of multiple-warhead ballistic missiles, for "more precise and destructive" strikes, according to IRNA. Following the US attack, Israel closed its airspace and raised its alert level throughout the country. The Israeli military also announced a new series of strikes in Iran.

Hailing a "very successful" attack on three Iranian nuclear sites, Donald Trump declared that "Iran's critical nuclear enrichment facilities have been completely and totally destroyed. Iran, the kingpin of the Middle East, must now make peace," Trump said at the White House. Otherwise, "the next attacks will be much bigger," he threatened. Before Israel's massive June 13 attack on Iran, Tehran and Washington had resumed talks since April, mediated by Oman, for a nuclear deal, but were stumbling over the US demand, rejected by Iran, for a complete halt to uranium enrichment.

What reactions?

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres expressed concern about a "dangerous escalation." Oman condemned an "illegal aggression" and called for "an immediate de-escalation," while Great Britain urged Iran to "return to the negotiating table." Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu congratulated Donald Trump in a video message for the attack, which he said was launched "in full coordination" with Israel. Trump is thus imposing a "historic turning point that can help lead the Middle East [...] toward a future of prosperity and peace," he said.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi condemned the "outrageous events (which) will have eternal consequences," denouncing Washington's "extremely dangerous, lawless, and criminal behavior." "Iran reserves all options to defend its sovereignty, its interests, and its people," he added, with his ministry going on to say that the US strikes demonstrated that the United States would stop at "no crime" to support Israel. The country's Atomic Energy Organization, for its part, affirmed that the US raids "will not stop" its nuclear program.

European Union foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas called for de-escalation and a return to negotiations: "I urge all parties to take a step back, return to the negotiating table, and avoid any further escalation," she wrote. Germany called on Iran to "immediately enter into negotiations" with the United States. "The current dangerous escalation in the region can lead to catastrophic consequences both regionally and internationally," the Qatari foreign ministry said, calling on "all parties to show wisdom and restraint and avoid any further escalation."

And now ?

By ordering the bombing of Iranian nuclear sites, Donald Trump has bet on force rather than diplomacy, a strategic shift by Washington toward Tehran whose consequences are difficult for experts to measure. "We will only know if (this bet) has succeeded if, within three to five years, the Iranian regime has not acquired the nuclear weapons that it now has good reason to want," says Kenneth Pollack, vice president of the Middle East Institute and himself a former CIA analyst.

But for Trita Parsi, executive vice president of the Quincy Institute for Responsible State Policy, with the decision to bomb, "it is now more likely that Iran will become a nuclear weapons state within five to ten years." "We should be careful not to confuse tactical success with strategic success," he adds. "Trump's decision to abruptly end his own diplomatic efforts will also make it much harder to reach a deal in the medium and long term," says Jennifer Kavanagh, director of military analysis at Defense Priorities, which advocates restraint. "Iran now has no reason to trust Trump or believe that reaching a compromise would advance the interests of the Islamic Republic," she adds.