The United States' precision airstrikes on Iran’s nuclear facilities on Saturday were executed under the codename Operation Midnight Hammer, involving over 125 military aircraft and a complex deception strategy, a senior U.S. general confirmed on Sunday. The entire mission was completed in just 25 minutes, and Iranian air defence systems did not engage any American assets, according to the US military.
Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Dan Caine, addressing a press briefing at the White House, detailed the operation, describing it as one of the most sophisticated aerial strikes in recent US military history. He said the mission involved seven B-2 Spirit stealth bombers, which dropped more than a dozen 30,000-pound Massive Ordnance Penetrator (MOP) bombs on two of Iran’s most critical nuclear facilities — Fordow and Natanz. Simultaneously, Tomahawk cruise missiles were launched at the nuclear site in Isfahan.
General Caine stated that the bombers struck their targets between 6:40 pm and 7:05 pm Eastern Time (ET), after which they immediately exited Iranian airspace. All aircraft involved had flown from a US base in Missouri, marking the longest B-2 bomber mission since the September 11 attacks in 2001.
In total, the operation deployed 14 bunker-buster bombs, over two dozen Tomahawk missiles, and more than 125 aircraft. It was also the first time the U.S. had used such ordnance against Iran in the current Middle East conflict. "The main strike package, comprised of seven B-2 bombers with two crew members each, flew with minimal communication throughout the 18-hour mission," Caine noted, highlighting the stealth and coordination involved in the operation.
He added that the offensive has significantly raised tensions in a region already grappling with nearly two years of continuous conflict, including wars in Gaza and Lebanon, and the collapse of the Assad regime in Syria.
General Caine provided a detailed breakdown of the timeline. He said that at midnight on Friday going into Saturday, a large B-2 strike force launched from the continental United States. To maintain tactical surprise, a portion of the aircraft flew westward into the Pacific Ocean as a decoy — a deception maneuver known only to a very limited number of military planners and key US leadership in Washington and Tampa.
At approximately 5:00 pm ET, a US submarine launched over two dozen Tomahawk land-attack cruise missiles targeting surface-level infrastructure at the Isfahan nuclear site. At 6:40 pm ET, the lead B-2 bomber released two massive bunker-buster bombs on the Fordow facility. Shortly after, the remaining B-2 bombers delivered their payloads on Natanz and Isfahan. By 7:05 pm ET, all strikes had concluded, and US forces began their return journey.
Caine emphasised that Iran did not fire any surface-to-air missiles during the operation. “It appears that Iran’s surface-to-air missile systems did not detect us,” he said. He added that the last Tomahawk strike on Isfahan was deliberately timed to help preserve the element of surprise throughout the mission.
US claims Iran's nuclear programme ‘obliterated’
Also present at the White House briefing was Secretary of Defence Pete Hegseth, who hailed the operation as a major success. He declared that Iran’s nuclear program had been “devastated” and “obliterated.” Hegseth reiterated the long-standing US position under President Donald Trump that Iran must never be allowed to develop nuclear weapons. “President Trump has been very clear since Day One — Iran will not be permitted to acquire a nuclear weapon,” he said.
The US strikes came on the heels of more than a week of Israeli-led attacks under Operation Rising Lion, which targeted Iran’s air defence systems and missile infrastructure. Israel launched the first wave of strikes on June 13, citing intelligence that Iran was nearing nuclear weapons capability. Israel, which is widely believed to possess nuclear weapons though it neither confirms nor denies it, has defended its military action as a preemptive move.
According to Iranian state-run Nour News, citing the country’s health ministry, at least 430 people have been killed and 3,500 injured in Iran since Israel began its strikes. In Israel, local authorities report that 24 civilians have died and 1,272 have been injured during the escalating conflict. As tensions soar across the region, analysts warn that the US operation, though executed with precision, risks pushing the Middle East closer to a broader, more dangerous confrontation.
Also Read: ‘A spectacular success’: Trump on US hitting Iranian nuke sites
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