Free Republic

On June 22, 2025, the United States struck deep. Using bunker-buster bombs, Operation Midnight Hammer targeted Iran’s most fortified nuclear facility, Fordow, along with a constellation of related sites. Within hours, a new narrative emerged. According to some analysts and media commentators, Iran had foreseen the strike and whisked its highly enriched uranium out of harm’s way just days before the bombs fell. It is a seductive story, part thriller, part geopolitical chess game. But it is also, on closer inspection, fiction. Fordow is not a shipping warehouse. It is a subterranean stronghold. Situated 2,500 feet beneath the mountains near...

There has been much discussion and conflicting opinions on how much damage the U.S. “Operation Midnight Hammer” strikes did to Iran’s nuclear facilities, especially the underground site Fordow. President Trump and his team claim that the 14 bunker-busting bombs destroyed the place and left it inoperable, while the mainstream media has been working aggressively to say the attacks only set Iran’s nuclear dreams back by a few months. Now there is fresh evidence that the late-night B-2 stealth bomber-led strikes caused plenty of destruction, and the Iranians are already trying to clean it up:NEW FORDOW SATELLITE IMAGESOngoing activity includes cranes,...

Iranian construction crews are busy at work on the surface of the uranium enrichment facility in Fordow five days after the US nailed the underground fortress with 30,000 pound bunker buster bombs, new satellite images showed. Crews operated excavators, bulldozers, and other construction vehicles near the craters and punctures in the ground above the nuclear facility caused by the GBU-57 bunker buster bombs dropped by American B-2s last weekend, according to images captured by Maxar Technologies on Friday. Other images showed apparent construction crews building access roads to the facility and rebuilding the damaged dirt road that led to the...

This weekend's strike on Iran's Fordow Fuel Enrichment Plant used 30,000-pound GBU-57 "massive ordnance penetrator" bombs. The design of those weapons and plans for attacking the site had been in the works for some 15 years, which resulted in the destruction of Iran's nuclear capabilities. "President Donald J. Trump directed the most complex and secretive military operation in history, and it was a resounding success, resulting in a cease-fire agreement and the end of the 12-day war [between Iran and Israel]," said Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth during a press briefing today at the Pentagon. "Because of decisive military action, President...

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth received an opportunity to put arguably the most despicable Pentagon reporter in her place today, and it was a sight to behold.As The Gateway Pundit reported, Hegseth delivered a masterclass performance during a Pentagon press conference on Thursday, in which he tore into their slanderous coverage of U.S. strikes on Iran’s nuclear facilities. Reporters immediately sought to play down the significance of the strikes and accused the Trump administration of exaggerating the accomplishment.Even more absurdly, the top takeaways some reporters, including leftist Fox News Jennifer Griffin, was Hegseth supposedly disrespecting females by saying, “Our boys on...

It wasn’t long after the smoke cleared in Isfahan, Natanz, and Fordow that the second explosion landed—on Capitol Hill. Except this one was pre-planned.With the precision of a broken clock, Senator Tim Kaine (D-VA) preemptively introduced a War Powers resolution on June 16—five full days before the June 21 airstrikes—laying the groundwork for a headline-grabbing repudiation before a single B-2 Spirit had lifted off.That’s right—before a single B-2 took flight, the legislative branch had already launched its own volley, aimed not at Tehran, but at the commander in chief. The phrase of the hour? “Unconstitutional.”Except it isn’t. And never was.The...

The polls are in… And, despite the MSM continuing to spout off a narrative about a brewing ‘MAGA civil war’ over President Trump’s strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities, a new YouGov poll from CBS News shows something very different. According to the poll’s results, an overwhelming majority of Republicans surveyed approve of the strikes — with an even higher percentage of MAGA Republicans approving! Check it out: InteractivePolls @IAPolls2022 CBS News Poll: Do you approve or disapprove of US strikes on Iran's nuclear facilities? Republicans 🟢 Approve: 85% (+70) 🔴 Disapprove: 15% MAGA Republicans 🟢 Approve: 94% (+88) 🔴 Disapprove:...

..... Members of Kentucky’s congressional delegation say Massie’s sprawling district, which runs along the northern border along Ohio and Indiana and stretches from the southern Cincinnati suburbs to the outer bands of the Louisville metro area, is a unique cross-section of the state that appears to relish Massie’s independent streak. It’s home to some of the most prominent members of the “liberty faction” of the Kentucky Republican Party, a group that embraces Trump while also gravitating toward libertarian-leaning Republicans like Massie and Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul. The senator has weathered his own barrage of attacks from Trump for voicing opposition...

Saudi news outlet Al Hadath reported on Tuesday, citing an anonymous Israeli security source, that Israel “knows exactly” where Iran is keeping its stockpiles of enriched uranium. The official who spoke to Al Hadath further claimed that “most of the enriched uranium is buried under the rubble in Iran." The status of Iran’s stockpile of enriched uranium remained a matter of speculation among officials since Israel launched preemptive strikes, including on various Iranian nuclear facilities, in the 12-day war that began June 13. Such speculation continued following American strikes on Iran’s three main nuclear facilities: Fordow, Natanz, and Isfahan. IDF...

House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., argued that the War Powers Act, a Nixon-era law limiting the president’s power to unilaterally wage war, is unconstitutional. President Donald Trump’s decision to order strikes on Iranian nuclear targets over the weekend was “clearly” within his powers under Article 2 of the U.S. Constitution, Johnson said. Rep. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., alongside Democratic Rep. Ro Khanna of California, has introduced a War Powers resolution that would bar the U.S. military from “unauthorized hostilities” in Iran. House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., argued Tuesday that the War Powers Act is unconstitutional, and vowed that a pending resolution...

If you assert the U.S. strikes on Iran’s nuclear sites at Fordo, Natanz and Isfahan were taken exclusively to remove the capacity of Iran to create a nuclear weapon, you likely missing a key point. However, if you recognize the strikes were not only about eliminating Iran’s nuclear capacity but also about taking Israel’s “Iran has nukes!” card off the table, then you begin to understand the after action message from the Trump administration. Essentially, by removing the Iran nuclear threat, the overall influence from Israel on President Trump’s foreign policy objective is also lessened. Within that dynamic you will...

The head of Iran's Atomic Energy Organization, Mohammad Eslami, recently announced on Iranian state television that Iran has begun building a new uranium enrichment facility, in a secure and secret location. He said the facility is expected to begin operating in the near future. Our pilots know the drill…

Trump administration officials on Tuesday slammed a leaked preliminary intelligence assessment of the damage done to Iran’s nuclear facilities by weekend US airstrikes that the president has touted as a massive success. The classified Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA) bomb damage assessment — deemed a “low confidence” estimation of the effectiveness of Saturday’s strikes on the Fordow, Isfahan and Natanz sites — reportedly determined that Iran could bring its nuclear program back online as quickly as within one to two months, according to Fox News. On the high end, estimates indicate that Iran could restart uranium enrichment within a year, according...

The head of the United Nations’ nuclear watchdog group revealed even more damage from the US airstrikes on Iran’s nuclear sites after taking a closer look — including possible chemical contamination at one facility. International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) chief Rafael Grossi said Tuesday that the latest satellite images from the Fordow and Natanz facilities showed additional damage, beyond what the agency found in the first-pass review of the sites. At Fordow, the mountain fortress just south of Tehran, officials identified additional strikes at the road leading up to the facility, as well as one of the entrances. The US...

Steve Bannon, a disgusting fraud. Nobody gives a sh*t about what you, Bannon, a confessed and convicted fraudster has to say. You’re a liar. You cheated how many people? At bottom, you’re a certified disgusting fraud. And it shows every time you open your big mouth. You opposed our great military and commander in chief at a time when they acted to destroy Iran’s nukes. 80% of Americans backed the operation. You and your tiny cabal of lunatics gave aide and comfort to the enemy. Now you prance around like you support our country rather than apologize for your outrageous...

"In fact, we actually believe they stored more of it in Fordo because they believe Fordo was impenetrable," the senator said. ... Sen. Markwayne Mullin (R-OK) revealed on Monday that U.S. intelligence contradicts claims that Iran moved nuclear materials before President Trump’s weekend airstrikes, which the senator believes “severely damaged, if not completely destroyed” Iran’s nuclear weapons capabilities. Satellite imagery taken prior to the attack, circulating across social media over the weekend, revealed trucks surrounding Fordo allegedly poised to haul away all nuclear material, which the senator rejects. “[Israel and Iran] are claiming that they moved some material,” Mullin said....

Within Israel, explosions are heard in Jerusalem but no immediate reports of damageIran's underground enrichment site at Fordow was hit again Monday while Iran fired a salvo of missiles and drones at Israel and warned the United States that its military now has a "free hand" to attack American targets in the wake of the Trump administration's massive strikes on Iranian nuclear sites. The Israeli military also confirmed it struck roads around the Fordow facility to obstruct access to the site. The Fordow facility was one of those hit in the initial attack over the weekend, and the subsequent Monday...

1) As I like to do, I wanted to wait til some of the Iranian Fordow dust settled. It will be weeks before anyone knows for sure how much damage was done to the Iranian nuke program, but suffice it to say that when combined with the earlier Israeli attacks . . . heap big damage. 2) The extent of this damage was seen in the Iranians' response, which was "WE'RE GOING TO SUE!" Yeah, that's a real deterrent there! 3) A word on the attack itself. It was carried out with precision not seen since Schwartzkopf's "Hail Mary" in...

After Russia and China: North Korea also announced that it strongly condemns the US attacks on Iran. Birds of a feather flock together 🇮🇱🇺🇸 vs🇷🇺🇨🇳🇰🇵 https://t.me/beholdisraelchannel/58506

Newly released satellite images showcase the aftermath of the 30,000 pound “bunker-buster” bombs the United States dropped on Iranian nuclear facilities. The U.S. operation, known as “Midnight Hammer” occurred on Saturday night, utilizing over 125 aircraft including seven 8-2 stealth bombers, multiple fighter jets, dozens of air refueling tankers, as well as a guided missile submarine and multiple reconnaissance aircraft, according to Joint Chiefs Chairman Air Force Gen. Dan Caine in a Sunday briefing. The attack struck three Iranian nuclear facilities including Fordo, Natanz, and Isfahan. Before and after images reveal the entire topography of the mountain protecting Iran’s Fordow...