by Ashlee Banks, Special to The Inner-City News courtesy of The Afro.com
Firefighters, rescue workers and military work at the site of a direct missile strike launched from Iran in Tel Aviv, Israel, on June 22, 2025. (AP Photo/Oded Balilty)
The United States military, in coordination with Israeli forces, carried out a series of airstrikes on Iranian nuclear sites June 21, marking a significant escalation in tensions between the three nations and deepening U.S. involvement in the long-running conflict between the Middle East rivals.
“We have completed our very successful attack on the three Nuclear sites in Iran, including Fordow, Natanz, and Esfahan,” President Donald Trump announced on Truth Social. “All planes are now outside of Iran air space. A full payload of BOMBS was dropped on the primary site, Fordow. All planes are safely on their way home. Congratulations to our great American Warriors.”
He added, “There is not another military in the World that could have done this. NOW IS THE TIME FOR PEACE! Thank you for your attention to this matter.”
In a televised address from the White House late June 21, Trump was joined by Vice President J.D. Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, as he laid out the rationale for the strikes and declared the operation a success.
“A short time ago, the U.S. military carried out massive, precision strikes on the three key nuclear facilities in the Iranian regime. Fordo, Natanz and Esfahan. Everybody heard those names for years as they built this horribly destructive enterprise,” Trump said.
“Our objective was the destruction of Iran’s nuclear enrichment capacity and a stop to the nuclear threat posed by the world’s No. 1 state sponsor of terror,” he continued. “Tonight, I can report to the world that the strikes were a spectacular military success. Iran’s key nuclear enrichment facilities have been completely and totally obliterated. Iran, the bully of the Middle East, must now make peace. If they do not, future attacks would be far greater and a lot easier.”
The president went on to cite decades of hostilities with Iran, including the deaths of American service members and civilians.
“For 40 years, Iran has been saying, Death to America, death to Israel. They have been killing our people, blowing off their arms, blowing off their legs, with roadside bombs. That was their specialty. We lost over 1,000 people, and hundreds of thousands throughout the Middle East and around the world have died as a direct result of their hate in particular.”
He praised Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the coordination between the two nations.
“We worked as a team like perhaps no team has ever worked before,” Trump said. “I want to thank the Israeli military for the wonderful job they’ve done. And most importantly, I want to congratulate the great American patriots who flew those magnificent machines tonight.
“Hopefully, we will no longer need their services in this capacity,” Trump added.
The operation targeted Iran’s key nuclear enrichment sites, including the fortified Fordo facility, located about 100 miles south of Tehran and buried roughly 300 feet beneath a mountain. The site has long been considered impervious to most conventional weapons, and Israel had reportedly urged the U.S. to use its bunker-busting GBU-57 MOP, a 30,000-pound bomb deliverable only by the B-2 stealth bomber.
The June 21 strikes mark the first direct military action by the U.S. in the current conflict, which has intensified following a series of escalations in the region.
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) condemned Trump’s decision to intervene militarily, saying the former president is “responsible for any adverse consequences” resulting from what he described as “unilateral military action.”
“Donald Trump promised to bring peace to the Middle East. He has failed to deliver on that promise. The risk of war has now dramatically increased, and I pray for the safety of our troops in the region who have been put in harm’s way,” Jeffries said in a statement.
He added, “President Trump misled the country about his intentions, failed to seek congressional authorization for the use of military force and risks American entanglement in a potentially disastrous war in the Middle East.”
Rep. Gabe Amo (D-R.I.) echoed those concerns, stating that the Trump administration must now bear the “burden” of justifying its actions.
“Trump’s unconstitutional, unilateral strikes against Iran endanger Americans and undermine Congress’ authority,” Amo said in a statement. “He risks dragging the U.S. into another endless war, breaking his promise to end foreign conflicts. There is no certainty that the strikes will prevent the nuclear capacity that Trump suggests, while putting U.S. troops in the region in danger.”
Even staunch MAGA allies like Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene are decrying the Oval Office’s decision to take military action.
The Georgia Republican wrote on X that “every time America is on the verge of greatness, we get involved in another foreign war.”
“There would not be bombs falling on the people of Israel if Netanyahu had not dropped bombs on the people of Iran first,” Greene wrote. “This is not our fight.”
At this time it is unclear what impact the strikes will bring, however, the move has intensified debate over presidential war powers and the future of U.S. involvement in the Middle East.