The US launched strikes against Iran: What we know
The article reports that the United States and Israel launched coordinated strikes against Iran, targeting leadership facilities and Iran’s ballistic missile and nuclear programs in what officials describe as a massive and ongoing operation called “Operation Epic Fury.”
Key points:
– What happened: Overnight strikes used sea- and air-based platforms to hit several sites in Iran where senior leaders were gathered. It remains unclear whether the ayatollah was killed or injured.The operation also aimed to degrade Iran’s nuclear and missile capabilities, with U.S. and Israeli forces acting in tandem.
– How long the operation will last: President Trump described the strikes as a combat operation that is ongoing and multi-day in scope.
– Legal questions and oversight: Some lawmakers argue the action constitutes a war that should have congressional authorization. The Gang of Eight was briefed, but others in Congress and some Democrats have demanded more details and may push for war powers votes or other oversight.
– Iran’s response: Iran launched retaliatory strikes against Israel and multiple U.S. bases in the Middle East. CENTCOM said U.S. forces defended against hundreds of missile and drone attacks, and Iran signaled a willingness to resume diplomacy if the operation ends.
– White House position: Officials said Trump spoke with Israeli Prime Minister netanyahu during the operation,and that he monitored developments at Mar-a-Lago with national security aides.
– Domestic and international reactions: Republicans broadly supported the action but called for more details, while Democrats varied, with some urging more transparency and others seeking limits on presidential war powers. NATO allies called for de-escalation and diplomacy, and there was concern about the legality and broader regional consequences.
– Why the strikes were undertaken: The U.S. and its allies have long expressed concern about Iran’s nuclear activities and ballistic-missile development, viewing them as direct threats to regional and global security. Prior strikes and ongoing diplomacy had sought to constrain Iran’s program, but talks reportedly stalled before this latest action.
– Additional context: Iran warned against disrupting vital shipping routes, with the Strait of Hormuz highlighted as strategically critically important. The UN and international observers indicated limited ability to verify Iran’s enrichment status at affected sites, contributing to ongoing international uncertainty about Iran’s nuclear program.
the piece presents a moment of heightened confrontation between the U.S., its allies, and Iran, framed by questions about legality, potential casualties, regional stability, and the path to de-escalation or further conflict.
The US and Israel attacked Iran: What we know
The United States and Israel on Saturday carried out strikes against Iran, marking a culmination of years of warnings about the threat the regime poses to global security.
The Trump administration has for months engaged in diplomatic talks with the Iranian Ayatollah Ali Khamenei’s government aimed at averting military intervention, due largely to concerns about the country’s nuclear weapons ambitions and the terrorism it promotes internationally.
What happened?
With no clear breakthrough in sight, the White House and Israel targeted Iran over the weekend. In an eight-minute video message posted to Truth Social, President Donald Trump said the objective of “Operation Epic Fury” is “to prevent this very wicked, radical dictatorship from threatening America and our core national security interests.” He described Iran as the world’s number 1 state sponsor of terror, and called on its citizens to overthrow the Ayatollah.
The strikes targeted several sites where the Ayatollah and other senior military leaders gathered in Iran. It remains unclear whether the Ayatollah was killed or injured. U.S. officials told NBC News that Israel had targeted Iranian leaders while the U.S.went after Iran’s ballistic missile and nuclear programs. There was no immediate word of U.S. casualties.
The U.S. military used sea and air-based platforms to launch massive strikes across Iran overnight, a U.S. official told the Wall Street Journal. American destroyers launched Tomahawk missiles from the waters in the Middle East and Eastern Mediterranean Sea, while U.S. jet fighters fired missiles, the official said.
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How long will the operation last?
Trump has described attacks as a “combat” operation that is “massive and ongoing.” A U.S. official said the “multiday” operation against Iran began at about 1 a.m. Eastern time with a salvo of ship-launched Tomahawk cruise missiles and air-launched munitions from U.S. Air Force and Navy jets, in comments to the Washington Post.
The president noted on Saturday the potential cost to American lives.
“The Iranian regime seeks to kill. The lives of courageous American heroes may be lost and we may have casualties — that often happens in war — but we’re doing this not for now. We’re doing this for the future, and it is a noble mission,” Trump said.
Ahead of the operation, Vice President J.D. Vance promised Thursday that the U.S. would not be drawn into another long-term war in the Middle East, amid fears internvention in Iran could echo the conflicts in Afghanistan and Iraq.
“The idea that we’re going to be in a Middle Eastern war for years with no end in sight — there is no chance that will happen,” he said. “I do think we have to avoid repeating the mistakes of the past. I also think that we have to avoid overlearning the lessons of the past…just because one president screwed up a military conflict doesn’t mean we can never engage in military conflict again. We’ve got to be careful about it, but I think the president is being careful.”
Are the strikes legal?
The Constitution states that Congress shall have the power “to declare war.” Some lawmakers, such as Rep. Elissa Slotkin (D-MI), are suggesting that the operation in Iran amounts to a war, saying Trump violated the Constitution in not bringing the matter to Congress. Reps. Thomas Massie (R-KY) and Ro Khanna (D-CA) are among others arguing that Trump abused his presidential authority to authorize the strikes without congressional approval.
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Secretary of State Marco Rubio alerted a key group of congressional leaders known as the “Gang of Eight” before the operation. He was able to reach seven of the eight members, which includes the top party members of the House and Senate intelligence committees.
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) wants to force a “war powers” vote seeking to restrict military action against Iran. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) requested that the Trump administration brief Congress on the operation, and expressed concern that members were not alerted to the “critical details about the scope and immediacy” of the Iranian threat. Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-LA) said he looks “forward to administration officials briefing all senators about these military operations.”
How has Iran responded?
Iran responded to the joint U.S.-Israel attack by launching retaliatory strikes against Israel, as well as at several U.S. military bases across the Middle East, including in the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain, and Jordan.
U.S. Central Command said its forces have “successfully defended against hundreds of Iranian missile and drone attacks.” Damage to American bases in the region has been “minimal and has not impacted operations,” a CENTCOM statement said. The statement also confirmed the use of the one-way drone.
Iran’s foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi, has signaled the country stands ready to resume diplomatic talks if the joint U.S.-Israeli operation ends.
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“If Americans wants to talk to us. They know how they can contact me. We are certainly interested for de-escalation. This is a war of choice by the United States, and they have to pay for that,” he told NBC News. “But as far as we are concerned, we don’t want war.”
Iran moved to shut down one of the world’s most strategic waterways after the attack. Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps told ships to avoid the Strait of Hormuz, a narrow shipping lane vital to energy markets that connects to the Persian Gulf, according to Reuters. Around a fifth of all oil traded passes through the corridor.
What is the White House saying?
The White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said Saturday that Trump has spoken on the phone with Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu.
Trump monitored the military assault in Iran “overnight at Mar-a-Lago alongside members of his national security team,” she said.
What are domestic and international leaders saying?
The domestic response to the strikes has been varied, with Republicans overall backing the mission, though calling for a congressional briefing on the matter. There have been some holdouts, including from Massie and Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY), who announced he would “oppose another presidential war.”
Democrats have been critical, although to varying degrees. Schumer and others have called for more details about the operation and criticized what they view as a lack of transparency. Others, such as Khanna, have been harsher, demanding Congress restrict the president’s ability to mount military operations. There have been some deviations in the Democratic caucus in favor of Trump’s decision, with Sen. John Fetterman (D-PA), who wholeheartedly backed the U.S. operation in a statement Saturday.
Rep. Mike Lawler (R-NY) said that under Article II of the Constitution, Trump holds the authority to carry out strikes.
“The notion that this strike is illegal or that the President needed Congress’ authority is wrong,” he said. “[Former Presidents Joe] Biden and [Barack] Obama conducted numerous strikes in numerous countries without Congress and none of the people screaming now, seemed to have any objections. For historical context, Congress has not declared war since WWII.”
By and large, U.S. allies and NATO partners have pushed for diplomatic negotiations to swiftly resume and called on Iran to immediately cease counterattacks.
Why did the U.S. attack?
The U.S. has long expressed concern that Iran is enriching uranium in efforts to create nuclear weapons. The Trump administration carried out strikes targeting three Iranian nuclear facilities last June in hopes of obliterating its nuclear program, which is viewed by Israel and other allies as a critical threat. One of the three nuclear sites was mostly destroyed, but the two others were not as badly damaged and may have been degraded only to a point where nuclear enrichment could resume within months, according to reports.
The United Nations’s nuclear watchdog said Friday that Iran has not allowed it access to the nuclear facilities bombed by the U.S. The International Atomic Energy Agency said it “cannot verify whether Iran has suspended all enrichment-related activities,” or the “size of Iran’s uranium stockpile at the affected nuclear facilities,” according to the Associated Press.
The State Department has held rounds of talks on the matter, including earlier this week in Geneva, but they fell short of a deal. The U.S. team of negotiators, led by special envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, requested that Iran destroy the three main nuclear sites at Fordow, Natanz, and Isfahan, and deliver all of its remaining enriched uranium to the U.S., demands that Iranian officials have objected to, according to the Wall Street Journal.
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Trump said Saturday that time had run out for Iran to make concessions. And he decried the regime’s actions to suppress uprisings against the government. The Ayatollah’s forces have reportedly killed up to tens of thousands of dissenters since massive protests began in December.
“They rejected every opportunity to renounce their nuclear ambitions, and we can’t take it anymore. Instead, they attempted to rebuild their nuclear program and to continue developing long-range missiles that can now threaten our very good friends and allies in Europe, our troops stationed overseas, and could soon reach the American homeland,” Trump said.
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