CNN: US did not use bunker-buster bombs on one of Iran’s nuclear sites, top general tells lawmakers, citing depth of the target

The US military did not use bunker-buster bombs on one of Iran’s largest nuclear sites last weekend because the site is so deep that the bombs likely would not have been effective, the US’ top general told senators during a briefing on Thursday.

The comment by Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Gen. Dan Caine, which was described by three people who heard his remarks and a fourth who was briefed on them, is the first known explanation given for why the US military did not use the Massive Ordnance Penetrator bomb against the Isfahan site in central Iran. US officials believe Isfahan’s underground structures house nearly 60% of Iran’s enriched uranium stockpile, which Iran would need in order to ever produce a nuclear weapon.

US B2 bombers dropped over a dozen bunker-buster bombs on Iran’s Fordow and Natanz nuclear sites. But Isfahan was only struck by Tomahawk missiles launched from a US submarine.

So what we heard from King Donald was largely lies and hot air — par for the course.

https://www.cnn.com/2025/06/27/politics/bunker-buster-bomb-isfahan-iran

Guardian: Trump and Hegseth admit doubts about level of damage to Iranian nuclear sites

President calls intelligence ‘inconclusive’, while defence secretary describes harm to facilities as ‘moderate to severe’

Donald Trump and the US defence secretary, Pete Hegseth, have admitted to some doubt over the scale of the damage inflicted on Iran’s nuclear sites by the US bombing at the weekend, after a leaked Pentagon assessment said the Iranian programme had been set back by only a few months.

“The intelligence was very inconclusive,” Trump told journalists at a Nato summit in The Hague, introducing an element of uncertainty for the first time after several days of emphatic declarations that the destruction had been total.

“The intelligence says we don’t know. It could’ve been very severe. That’s what the intelligence suggests.”

The president then appeared to revert to his claim that “it was very severe. There was obliteration”. Later in the day, he claimed that was the conclusion from “collected intelligence”, and that the Iranian programme had been set back “decades”.

Trump also likened the US use of massive bunker-buster bombs on the Fordow and Natanz uranium enrichment sites to the impact of the US nuclear weapons dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki in the second world war, using the comparison specifically in reference to their impact in ending a conflict.

Over the course of the day, Trump’s claims became more far-reaching, even rejecting reports from the nuclear watchdog, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), that Iran’s 400kg stock of 60% enriched uranium could no longer be accounted for, and appeared to have been moved.

Despite all the huffing and puffing, the bombings were pretty much a flop.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/jun/25/trump-and-hegseth-admit-doubts-over-irans-nuclear-sites-damage-by-us-strikes

Alternet: Trump just broke the law — again

After the United States bombed Iran’s three nuclear facilities on Sunday, US President Donald Trump said its objective was a “stop to the nuclear threat posed by the world’s number one state sponsor of terror”.

US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth echoed this justification, saying:

The president authorised a precision operation to neutralize the threats to our national interest posed by the Iranian nuclear program and the collective self-defenze of our troops and our ally Israel.

Is this a legitimate justification for a state to launch an attack on another?

I believe, looking at the evidence, it is not.

Under the UN Charter, there are two ways in which a state can lawfully use force against another state:

・the UN Security Council authorizes force in exceptional circumstances to restore or maintain international peace and security under Chapter 7

・the right of self defense when a state is attacked by another, as outlined in Article 51.

On the first point, there was no UN Security Council authorization for either Israel or the US to launch an attack on Iran to maintain international peace and security. The security council has long been concerned about Iran’s nuclear program and adopted a series of resolutions related to it. However, none of those resolutions authorized the use of military force.

With regard to self defence, this right is activated if there is an armed attack against a nation. And there’s no evidence of any recent Iranian attacks on the US.

https://www.alternet.org/trump-international-courts

Newsweek: Trump’s most favorable pollster warns it could be “all over for MAGA”

President Donald Trump‘s most favorable pollster has warned that it could be “all over for MAGA” if the president gets the United States more deeply involved in the conflict between Iran and Israel.

“Kiss the Republican majority goodbye… For the next decade,” Rich Baris, the director of Big Data Poll, wrote on X, formerly Twitter. “If he pulls the trigger, it’s all over for MAGA.”

I seriously doubt that Trump has the brains to step back from brink. On the plus side, perhaps we’ll be rid of him sooner than 2029.

https://www.newsweek.com/trump-pollster-warns-all-over-maga-iran-israel-2086637

Mirror: JD Vance announces Trump ready to take ‘further action’ to stop Iran as VP breaks silence on rising tensions

Vice President JD Vance has broken his silence in a lengthy post on the social media site X over the mounting tensions between Iran and Israel

“That decision ultimately belongs to the president. And of course, people are right to be worried about foreign entanglement after the last 25 years of idiotic foreign policy,” Vance concluded. “But I believe the president has earned some trust on this issue. And having seen this up close and personal, I can assure you that he is only interested in using the American military to accomplish the American people’s goals. Whatever he does, that is his focus.”

The statement by Vance comes after Trump ordered 10 million residents of Tehran, Iran to “evacuate immediately.” It comes after the president left the G7 summit in Canada in order to work on a peace deal with Iran and Israel who have begun exchanging missiles.

Only the most arrogant of assholes would take 16% as a mandate!

https://www.themirror.com/news/us-news/breaking-jd-vance-announces-trump-1213652

Mirror: JD Vance announces Trump ready to take ‘further action’ to stop Iran as VP breaks silence on rising tensions

Praising Trump’s actions, Vance stated that he has seen Trump show “remarkable restraint in keeping our military’s focus on protecting our troops and protecting our citizens.” According to Vance, Trump “may decide he needs to take further action to end Iranian enrichment.”

Just remember — 16% is not a mandate! This will be the end of reign of King Donald.

https://www.themirror.com/news/us-news/breaking-jd-vance-announces-trump-1213652