In his first public response to the recent U.S. airstrikes on Iranian nuclear sites, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian accused the United States of being the main power orchestrating Israel’s military aggression against Iran.
Speaking to the IRNA news agency, President Pezeshkian stated, “This aggression has unmasked America as the key force behind the Zionist regime’s hostility towards the Islamic Republic. The U.S. entered the fray only after witnessing Israel’s inability to contain Iran alone.”
The United States launched a coordinated attack on three major Iranian nuclear facilities—Fordo, Isfahan, and Natanz—overnight. President Donald Trump declared the sites “completely and fully obliterated” and warned of more strikes if Iran retaliated.
The latest escalation follows a violent episode that began on June 13, when Israeli air raids targeted key Iranian military and nuclear sites, killing senior personnel and nuclear scientists. In retaliation, Iran launched a massive barrage of missiles and drones at Israeli cities, some of which penetrated Israel’s sophisticated air defense shield.
The conflict has resulted in widespread destruction, with hundreds killed and over a thousand injured in Iran, while Israel reported more than two dozen deaths and several hundred injuries.
Iran insists its nuclear program remains strictly for peaceful purposes, but Israel maintains that Iran’s capabilities pose an existential threat. While U.S. intelligence agencies currently do not believe Iran is pursuing a nuclear weapon, Trump and Israeli officials argue that Tehran is close to assembling one.
This new phase of the regional conflict comes amid an ongoing Israeli offensive in Gaza aimed at dismantling Hamas, a close Iranian ally. Tensions have been steadily escalating since the October 7, 2023 Hamas attack on southern Israel.
In a televised address, Trump described the precision strikes as a “spectacular military success” and declared, “Iran must now choose peace.”
Iran’s Atomic Energy Organization confirmed the attacks but reaffirmed that the country’s nuclear program would continue. The UN’s nuclear watchdog, along with Iranian officials, reported no immediate radioactive leaks from the bombed sites.
