The United States has launched attacks on Iran. What you need to know

On the night of June 22, US President Donald Trump announced a US air attack on Iran's nuclear infrastructure. Later, he delivered a speech addressed to the Americans. Iran has demanded that the UN Security Council hold an emergency meeting over the US attack.

What happened

As indicated by the Reuters news agency, the B-2A Spirit stealth strategic bombers participated in the operation. Fox News reports that six GBU-57 aerial bombs were fired at the Iranian Fordo facility, and 30 Tomahawk cruise missiles launched from submarines were fired at Isfahan and Natanz. According to CBS, Washington informed Tehran in advance that the purpose of the operation was only targeted strikes, not an attempt to overthrow the country's leadership. The New York Times points out that according to American intelligence agencies, Israel's recent actions have only briefly slowed down the development of Iran's nuclear program.

Trump said that key uranium enrichment centers had been completely disabled. At the same time, he described Iran as a "bully of the region" and stressed that the most protected and important targets had been hit, but the threat had not yet been completely eliminated.

How serious is it

Important facilities were evacuated in advance. No signs of radioactive contamination have been found yet. Iran has officially demanded an emergency meeting of the UN Security Council. A letter with this demand was sent to UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres and the Chairman of the Security Council, Permanent Representative of Guyana to the United Nations Carolyn Rodriguez-Birkett.

What was Iran's reaction

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi said the consequences of the attack would be significant, and Iran reserves the right to defend its interests by using self-defense measures.