By Prof Michel Chossudovsky
Operation Midnight Hammer (OMH) consisting in the deployment of B-2 Aircraft out of Whitman Air Force Base was in many regards improvised.
OMH was undertaken by US Central Command (USCENTCOM), based in Florida in close coordination with US Strategic Command (USSTRATCOM) in Omaha, Nebraska.
In this article, we first put forth detailed evidence which refutes President Trump‘s June 22, 2025 Address to the Nation.
We then proceed to examine the broader political implications. This improvised so-called “Twelve Days War” against Iran was NOT authorized by the U.S. Congress.
Trump’s War on Iran: June 22, 2025
During his 10 p.m. ET address to the nation, Trump said, “Iran’s key nuclear enrichment facilities have been completely and totally obliterated.”
“After U.S. B-2 bombers dropped six 30,000-pound GBU‑57 Massive Ordnance Penetrator bombs on Iran’s Fordow nuclear site on Saturday night, President Donald Trump reposted an assessment from Open Source Intel that said “Fordow is gone”
Mr. President. Where is the Evidence?
The above statement “Trump says Iran’s nuclear enrichment facilities ‘completely and totally obliterated’ in US Strikes” is FALSE, MISTAKEN.
The following evidence was conveyed and confirmed within hours of President Trump’s Address to the Nation, largely from Iranian media and official sources:
“On June 22, according to the Iranian Tasnim News Agency, Menan Laehi, a representative of Qom Province in the Iranian Parliament, stated this morning (June 22) that contrary to claims made by U.S. President Trump, the Fordow nuclear facility in Iran has not been severely damaged;
The main damage is to the above-ground parts, which can be repaired.
He expressed confidence that “all items that could pose a threat to nearby residents” have long been cleared from the facility, and there are currently no reports of nuclear radiation.
He emphasized that Iran views this U.S. attack as a manifestation of direct U.S. involvement in the war, and it is now “Iran’s decision when and how to respond to the U.S.”
***
The following reports quoting Iran Military News states the following:
[https://twitter.com/iranianmilnews/status/1936616876987072862]
[https://twitter.com/IranIntl_En/status/1936769967476576643]
“If Fordo had been gone, you would have seen craters, electromagnetic ruptures, emergency airlifts, the work of seismographs and infrared flashes under the mountain
There is no SAR confirmation at the moment.
There is no evidence of a cluster of craters.
There is no multispectral flash analysis.
There is no information about an underground fire.
There is no data on the BDA cycle. If Fordo is still in action tomorrow, Washington has just carried out the most expensive bunker-busting operation in history, only to watch Tehran climb the escalation ladder unscathed.
Perhaps not only did the attack fail, but they simply escalated without strategic success.” https://t.me/kavehintel/561 – zinc
In a followup article:
If Fordow is still spinning tomorrow, Washington will have carried out the most expensive bunker-penetration operation in history—only to watch Tehran climb the escalation ladder unscathed.
Not only may the strike have failed, but they have also escalated the situation without any strategic success.
Those sites were evacuated long time ago. That’s why there’s not much radiation as the result of these «attacks»” (Pravda, emphasis added)
Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth’s Press Conference. Trump Accuses Pentagon Accredited Journalists of “Fake News”
Press conferences are intent upon conveying information and evidence to journalists as well as answering questions. But that did not happen.
Below is the complete video of the Press Conference (6/26/25)
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xEpsAYWB2rQ]
See AP report here link to video on Iran war, AP
“Operation Midnight Hammer”(OMH): 14 Bunker Busters Bombs Against Iran’s Nuclear Sites
The official story is as follows:
“A bomber mission of seven B-2 Spirit Bombers, accompanied by more than 30 Tomahawk Attack Missiles fired from an Ohio-class guided-missile nuclear submarine struck three Iranian nuclear sites at Natanz, Isfahan and Fordo, Pentagon officials confirmed on Sunday.
In the words of President Trump:
“Iran’s key nuclear enrichment facilities have been completely and totally obliterated,” (White House Address, June 21 Y, 2025).
The evidence presented above refutes President Trump’s statement: (June 21, 2025 Nation Address).
Specifically regarding Forow. The B-2 bunker bomb operation was an absolute failure.
Trump’s threats directed against accredited Pentagon journalists at Hegeth’s Press Conference are to no avail.
And eventually he will be obliged to acknowledge the truth, or will the “Big Lie” prevail.
The GBU-57. Massive Ordnance Penetrator
“30,000 lbs, with 5,000–6,000 lbs of explosives”
It is designed to penetrate up to 200 feet into reinforced concrete or rock before detonation.”
The claim is that it can reach and destroy underground facilities such as nuclear enrichment sites.”
The initials “GBU” stand for “Guided Bomb Unit”
The “Bunker Buster Bomb Myth”. MIT Prof. Ted Postol
These claims are likely overstated or misunderstood, especially by political decision-makers, misinformed by defense contractors or military briefers.
The bomb must hit very close to or directly above a target, such as a tunnel or chamber, to do meaningful damage.
A blast cavity from the explosion is ~20–30 meters wide. If the actual tunnel is offset by more than that (30+ meters horizontally or vertically), it won’t be affected.”
Video: Prof. Ted Postol and Lt. Col. Daniel Davis
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TriASB-F5UY]
“U.S. attack models assume Iranian bunkers are simple, vertical shafts, but: Real underground bunkers may use offset tunnels, angled passages, or be built into irregular terrain like hills, making direct hits extremely unlikely.
Example: Iran’s Fordow facility is buried under a hill, making perpendicular impact very difficult.” (Prof Ted Postol)
The Bunker Buster Gamble. Did it Pay OFF?
Prof. Ted Postol Examines in Detail the Bunker Buster Bombs used against Iran Nuclear Facilities.
“They Did not do Damage”
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rA_eK13ptwA]
While the conduct of the attack against Iran’s nuclear facilities was an outright failure, there is nonetheless a “positive element” which will go down in Iran’s history.
Failure of Trump’s OMH Attack. A Chernobyl Style Catastrophe Was Avoided
Had the OMH Operation been conducted “successfully” from a military standpoint, this would have resulted in a Chernobyl style disaster characterized by a massive radioactive contamination and loss of life.
According to geopolitical and military analyst Drago Bosnic:”
The uranium used as fuel in nuclear power plants is enriched at 3.67%, which is considered far below the 90% or higher used in nuclear weapons. It should be noted that the Chernobyl and Fukushima disasters used precisely this sort of nuclear fuel, which still resulted in massive radioactive contamination.
On the other hand, the Fordow facility had uranium enriched at 60%, meaning that radioactive fallout would’ve been far worse than Chernobyl.
Given the fact that no radiation was detected in the aftermath of the US strike, the only logical conclusion is that the reactors weren’t destroyed. (Drago Bosnic, Infobrics, emphasis added)
What this analysis implies is that the failure of Trump’s military operation contributed to preventing an unspoken disaster.
The U.S. Congress has the Power to Declare War, Not The President
War is a criminal act. Military actions deliberately directed against civilians are illegal according to the laws of Armed Conflict (LOAC).
In the wake of 9/11, US-NATO have been routinely conducting “humanitarian wars” allegedly against terrorists. Humanitrian Warfare is supportive of Resposibility to Protect (R2P). The latter does not require US Congressional approval. Nor does it require a formal motion by the United Nations Security Council (UNSC).
The Trump Administration casually invoked Article II of the US Constitution which defines the responsibilities of the Commander in Chief.
No consultations with the UN Security Council were undertaken. Breach of the Geneva Conventions. Scanty justifications were put forth by Trump officials.
“The administration is relying on the president’s authority under Article II of the Constitution, two senior administration officials told CNN, which says he has power to direct US military forces in engagements necessary to advance American national interests abroad.
The White House counsel’s office and the Justice Department were both involved in the legal analysis for the strikes. The administration relied, in part, on memos about war powers written by the DOJ’s Office of Legal Counsel under previous administrations of both parties.”
“The president is clearly well within his Article II powers here,” one former senior US official told CNN. “End of story.” (CNN,emphasis added)
Michel Chossudovsky is an award-winning author, Professor of Economics (emeritus) at the University of Ottawa, Founder and Director of the Centre for Research on Globalization (CRG), Montreal, Editor of Global Research.
28 June 2025
Source: globalresearch.ca