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During '''Operation Midnight Hammer''' on June 22, 2025, [[B-2]] bombers reportedly launched from Whiteman Air Force Base in [[Missouri]], flying a transatlantic route over the [[Atlantic Ocean]] and [[Mediterranean Sea]], eventually entering [[Iranian]] airspace from the west or southwest. Just before dawn on June 22, a coordinated strike began. U.S. B-2 bombers, [[F-35]]s, and [[cruise missile]]s targeted key elements of Iran’s nuclear infrastructure, including Natanz, [[Fordow]], and a suspected new facility near Isfahan. Cyber operations and internal [[fifth column]] [[sabotage]] complemented the external attack.
During '''Operation Midnight Hammer''' on June 22, 2025, [[B-2]] bombers reportedly launched from Whiteman Air Force Base in [[Missouri]], flying a transatlantic route over the [[Atlantic Ocean]] and [[Mediterranean Sea]], eventually entering [[Iranian]] airspace from the west or southwest. Just before dawn on June 22, a coordinated strike began. U.S. B-2 bombers, [[F-35]]s, and [[cruise missile]]s targeted key elements of Iran’s nuclear infrastructure, including Natanz, [[Fordow]], and a suspected new facility near Isfahan. Cyber operations and internal [[fifth column]] [[sabotage]] complemented the external attack.
According to multiple [[Western alliance|Western]] and regional officials, the [[United States]] delivered a discreet warning to [[Tehran]] in the hours before the strikes. The message—relayed through a combination of [[Swiss]] diplomatic channels, [[Qatar]]i intermediaries, and backchannel signals-was clear: the U.S. would strike specific [[nuclear]] targets only, and Iran should avoid escalation if it wanted to prevent a broader [[war]].
One senior [[GCC|Gulf]] [[intelligence agency|intelligence official]] described it as "a calibrated message—not asking for permission, but offering a limit." The [[U.S.]] reportedly made it clear that no leadership targets, [[civilian]] [[infrastructure]], or [[military]] barracks would be hit—only nuclear facilities deemed to be in violation of past agreements.
Iranian leaders, faced with overwhelming American air power and a deteriorating [[economy]], made a calculated decision not to respond militarily.
In the days that followed, Iran's official response remained restrained. There were denunciations in the [[media]] and [[diplomatic]] protests, but no serious and massive military action against the U.S. targets, just a symbolic bite, for which they communicated the exact time of the attack to the U.S. base in Qatar, and the base was evacuated. All three sides declared victory.