Senior military leaders in the United States have disclosed that the recent airstrikes on Iran’s nuclear facilities involved a significant deception operation. This included the deployment of ‘decoy’ aircraft that effectively diverted attention, enabling the actual bombers to operate without detection.

During an unusual early morning press conference at the Pentagon on Sunday, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Dan Caine provided insights into the operation.

Hegseth highlighted the stealthy nature of the mission, stating, ‘Our B-2s conducted their mission without being detected, entering and leaving the target area seamlessly.’ This mission marked one of the most extensive deployments of B-2 bombers in history.

‘A large B-2 strike package comprised of bombers launched from the continental United States as part of a plan to maintain tactical surprise part of the package proceeded to the west and into the Pacific as a decoy, a deception effort known only to an extremely small number of climbers and key leaders here in Washington,’ Caine said.

The chairman of the joint chiefs claimed no Iranian planes were deployed to intercept the bombers, and the planes used in the strike were not hit with any fire.

Caine said the mission was named ‘Operation Midnight Hammer’ and was meant to degrade the country’s nuclear programs.   

‘Iran’s nuclear ambitions have been obliterated,’ Hegseth added, noting the operation was an ‘incredible and overwhelming success.’ It did not target Iranian troops or Iranian people, the defense secretary stressed.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth speaks during a news conference at the Pentagon in Washington, Sunday, June 22, 2025, after the U.S. military struck three sites in Iran, directly joining Israel’s effort to destroy the country’s nuclear program

Israeli police and search and rescue teams deploy to the area begin investigation and search operations after one of the missiles launched by Iran in retaliation for Israeli attacks struck the center of Tel Aviv, Israel, on June 22, 2025

The surprise attack on Saturday utilized seven B-2 stealth bombers that dropped 14 30,000-pound ‘bunker buster’ bombs on Iran’s primary nuclear facility.

Over 125 U.S. aircraft participated in the mission, including bombers, fighters, and refueling tankers, Caine said. Approximately 75 precision-guided weapons were employed in the attacks, including Tomahawk missiles fired from submarines.

However, it is still unclear whether the strikes on the nuclear sites completely destroyed Iran’s nuclear capabilities. Caine admitted that the operation ‘severely damaged’ the sites, but shared little more detail. 

President Donald Trump announced Saturday in an evening address at the White House that U.S. strikes within Iran ‘were a spectacular military success.’ 

Nuclear sites in Fordow, Natanz and Isfahan were all hit, the president said.  

The most difficult target was a secret uranium enrichment facility located deep underground in Fordow, approximately 80 miles south of Tehran. 

U.S. submarines also fired 30 Tomahawk missiles and wiped out two other Iranian nuclear sites at Natanz and Isfahan.

Hours after the strikes, Iranian forces began lobbing missiles at Israel in a counterattack.

Iran’s foreign minister Abbas Araghchi called the U.S. offensive ‘extremely dangerous, lawless and criminal behavior.’

The U.S. used seven B-2 bombers to attack the Iranian sties

‘Humanity has come too far as a species to allow a lawless bully to take us back to the law of the jungle,’ Aragchi said. 

The Middle Eastern country has vowed revenge for the airstrikes. Iran’s leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, threatened ‘severe punishment.’ 

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, meanwhile, celebrated Trump for attacking ‘the world’s most dangerous regime’ 

And Hegseth noted that while many presidents have dreamed of delivering the ‘final blow’ to Iran’s nuclear programs, ‘none could until President Trump.’

But experts note it will take some time to verify if the bombing campaign eradicated all of Iran’s nuclear capability.