American Super Bombers Left the US. Only These Machines Can Destroy Iranian Bases
American B-2 strategic bombers, aircraft capable of destroying the underground Fordo nuclear facility in Iran, have left the United States, the Israeli daily Haretz reported on Saturday.
Two to four B-2 bombers, which Israel estimates can carry bombs that could destroy Iran's fortified Fordo nuclear site, took off Saturday morning from Whiteman Air Base in Missouri, an Israeli daily reported, citing air traffic tracking data.
The planes, accompanied by four tankers, are heading west toward the Guam naval base in the Pacific Ocean, it added. It is unclear whether they are to continue to the naval support base in Diego Garcia, which is located about 3,700 km from Iran, the media noted.
Last October, a B-2 bomber arriving directly from the United States carried out attacks in Yemen.
The Pentagon is sending B-2 bombers from a base in Missouri to the Pacific, a US Defense Department source confirmed Saturday, quoted by the Wall Street Journal. Officials said the order to prepare the bombers for an attack has not been issued.
The administration of US President Donald Trump is deploying bombers in the right place in case they are needed to attack Iran, the "WSJ" stressed. Moving the planes could also help put pressure on Iran, the newspaper said.
Flight tracking services show the planes and tankers headed west, most likely toward the naval base in Guam in the Pacific Ocean. A Defense Ministry official confirmed the moves.
Officials said no orders were given to prepare an attack using the B-2.
The Pentagon referred reporters with questions about the bombers to the White House, which declined to comment.
If the US joins the war against Iran, its goal will likely be to destroy the underground uranium enrichment facilities at Fordo. Destroying this facility is a priority for Israel, but unlike the US, it does not have the penetrating bombs, carried by B-2 bombers, necessary to carry out such an attack. On Thursday, Trump announced that he would hold off on a decision regarding Iran for two weeks.
A few months ago, the United States transferred about six B-2 bombers to the Diego Garcia base. Their goal was to deter Iran and Yemen. However, these planes have not yet participated in American attacks in Yemen - "Harec" recalled.
Israel can handle itself in the "shallower" basesIranian media reported Saturday "strong explosions" in the southwest of the country, as the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) confirmed that Israel had destroyed a plant that made uranium enrichment centrifuges in Isfahan that day.
The explosions rocked the city of Ahvaz, the capital of Khuzestan province, on the Iran-Iraq border. The region is Iran's leading oil producer. The army said the Israeli attacks targeted "military infrastructure."
The IAEA confirmed the earlier Israeli announcement about the destruction of a factory producing uranium enrichment centrifuges in Isfahan. It was the third such facility destroyed in Iran since the Israeli attacks began on June 13.
"We know this facility well. There was no nuclear material there, so an attack on it would have no radiological consequences," said IAEA Director Rafael Grossi.
Iranian Health Minister Mohammad-Reza Zafarghandi said Saturday that three hospitals had been hit in Israel's ongoing campaign, killing two doctors. Seven ambulances were also damaged and 14 emergency workers were injured, said Jafar Miadfar, head of Iran's Emergency Medical Services Organization.
Iran's health ministry said earlier in the day that 430 people had been killed and 3,500 wounded in the country since June 13. According to the Human Rights Activists in Iran (HRAI), at least 657 people had been killed and more than 2,000 wounded in Israeli attacks as of Friday. Of the dead, 263 were civilians and 164 were security forces.
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