The US Pentagon held a press conference to detail its "successful" plan of striking the three nuclear programme sites of Iran early Sunday (June 22) morning Iranian time. US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth stressed that the US strikes on the sites were not a preamble to plans for regime change.
00:00More than 125 U.S. aircraft participated in this mission.
00:21We devastated the Iranian nuclear program.
00:25But it's worth noting the operation did not target Iranian troops or the Iranian people.
00:32For the entirety of his time in office, President Trump has consistently stated for over 10 years that Iran must not get a nuclear weapon.
00:43Full stop.
00:44Thanks to President Trump's bold and visionary leadership and his commitment to peace through strength, Iran's nuclear ambitions have been obliterated.
00:55Many presidents have dreamed of delivering the final blow to Iran's nuclear program.
01:02And none could.
01:04Until President Trump.
01:06At midnight Friday into Saturday morning, a large B-2 strike package comprised of bombers launched from the continental United States.
01:14As part of a plan to maintain tactical surprise, part of the package proceeded to the west and into the Pacific as a decoy.
01:23A deception effort known only to an extremely small number of planners and key leaders here in Washington and in Tampa.
01:32The main strike package comprised of seven B-2 spirit bombers, each with two crew members, proceeded quietly to the east with minimal communications.
01:43As the Operation Midnight Hammer strike package entered Iranian airspace, the U.S. employed several deception tactics, including decoys, as the fourth and fifth generation aircraft pushed out in front of the strike package at high altitude and high speed, sweeping in front of the package for enemy fighters and surface-to-air missile threats.
02:08We are currently unaware of any shots fired at the U.S. strike package on the way in.
02:15At approximately 6.40 p.m. Eastern Standard Time, 2.10 a.m. Iran time, the lead B-2 dropped two GBU-57 massive ordnance penetrator weapons on the first of several aim points at Fordow.
02:33As the President stated last night, the remaining bombers then hit their targets as well, with a total of 14 mops dropped against two nuclear target areas.
02:45All three Iranian nuclear infrastructure targets were struck between 6.40 p.m. and 7.05 p.m. Eastern Time.
02:55Again, that's about 2.10 in the morning local time in Iran, with the Tomahawk missiles being the last to strike at Esfahan to ensure we retain the element of surprise throughout the operation.
03:09Following weapons release, the Midnight Hammer strike package exited Iranian airspace and the package began its return home.
03:18We are unaware of any shots fired at the package on the way out.
03:26Iran's fighters did not fly, and it appears that Iran's surface-to-air missile systems did not see us.
03:36Throughout the mission, we retained the element of surprise.
03:40I know that battle damage is of great interest.
03:42Final battle damage will take some time, but initial battle damage assessments indicate that all three sites sustained extremely severe damage and destruction.
03:53I'll take a few questions, Phil.
03:55Me?
03:56Yeah.
03:56So, is regime change off the table, Mr. Secretary?
04:01This mission was not and has not been about regime change.
04:05The president authorized a precision operation to neutralize the threats to our national interests posed by the Iranian nuclear program and the collective self-defense of our troops and our ally, Israel.
04:20Secretary Hegseth, as a global war on terrorism veteran, what do you say to veterans who may be concerned the U.S. is getting into another open-ended war in the Middle East over weapons of mass destruction?
04:31I'll just say, as the president has directed and made clear, this is most certainly not open-ended.
04:38It doesn't mean it limits our ability to respond.
04:41We will respond if necessary.
04:43The most powerful military in the world is postured and prepared to defend our people.
04:47But what the president gave us, as I said, was a focused, powerful, and clear mission on the destruction of Iranian nuclear capabilities.
04:56Those were the targets.
04:57That's what was struck.
04:59That was overwhelming.
05:00That's what the Iranian regime needs to understand, as the president put out last night.
05:05He wants peace.
05:06There needs to be a negotiated settlement here.
05:08We ultimately demonstrated that Iran cannot have a nuclear capability.
05:12That is a very clear mission set on this operation.
