INTERNACIONAL
Hegseth, military brass describe ‘incredible and overwhelming success’ of US strikes on Iran
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Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Dan «Razin» Caine held a press conference from the Pentagon early Sunday morning to relay details on the U.S. military’s successful strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities.
«Last night, on President Trump’s orders, U.S. Central Command conducted a precision strike in the middle of the night against three nuclear facilities in Iran Fordow, Natanz and Isfahan in order to destroy or severely degrade Iran’s nuclear program,» Hegseth said Sunday morning from the Pentagon.
«It was an incredible and overwhelming success,» Hegseth continued. «The order we received from our commander in chief was focused. It was powerful, and it was clear we devastated the Iranian nuclear program. But it’s worth noting the operation did not target Iranian troops or the Iranian people for the entirety of his time in office.»
The press conference was held following President Donald Trump addressing the nation at 10 p.m. Saturday evening, just hours after he announced the successful strikes on a trio of Iranian nuclear facilities.
ISRAEL-IRAN CONFLICT: LIVE UPDATES
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth (left) and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Air Force Gen. Dan Caine (right) arrive for a news conference at the Pentagon on June 22, 2025, in Arlington, Virginia. (Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)
«The mission demonstrated to the world the level of joint and allied integration that speak to the strength of our alliance and our joint forces,» Hegseth continued. «As President Trump has stated, the United States does not seek war, but let me be clear: We will act swiftly and decisively when our people, our partners or our interests are threatened. Iran should listen to the United States and know that he means it.»
Caine addressed the media and explained the strikes, dubbed «Operation Midnight Hammer,» included the use of submarines, dozens of Tomahawk land attack cruise missiles, and the «longest B-2 spirit bomber mission since 2001.»
«At approximately 5 p.m. Eastern Standard Time last night and just prior to the strike package entering Iran, a U.S. submarine in the Central Command area of responsibility launched more than two dozen Tomahawk land attack cruise missiles against key surface infrastructure targets as often as the Operation Midnight Hammer strike package entered Iranian airspace,» Caine said. «The U.S. employed several deception tactics.»
Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Dan Caine, right, and Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth. (Getty Images)
«This was a highly classified mission with very few people in Washington knowing the timing or nature of this plan,» he continued. «I’ll refer you to the graphic on the side as I walk you through some of the operational details. At midnight Friday into Saturday morning, a large B-2 strike package comprised of bombers launched from the continental United States as part of the 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 planners and key leaders here in Washington and in Tampa.»
TRUMP ADDRESSES NATION ON ‘SPECTACULAR MILITARY SUCCESS’ OF US STRIKES ON IRANIAN NUCLEAR FACILITIES
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth held a press conference at the Pentagon on June 22, 2025. (Fox News / The Will Cain Show)
Trump announced the U.S. had struck a trio of nuclear facilities in Iran via a Saturday evening Truth Social post, which was not preceded by any media leaks of prior indication such strikes were imminent.
The president ordered U.S. B-2 stealth bombers to carry out the strikes against Iran’s Fordow, Natanz and Isfahan nuclear facilities.
Five to six bunker-buster bombs struck the Fordow nuclear site, Trump told Fox News’ Sean Hannity shortly after announcing the Saturday night strikes.
Trump later addressed the nation from the White House while flanked by Vice President JD Vance, Hegseth and Secretary of State Marco Rubio, where he announced Iran’s nuclear facilities had been «obliterated» and that the country has been backed into a corner and «must now make peace.»
TRUMP DECLARES ‘VERY SUCCESSFUL ATTACK’ ON IRAN’S NUCLEAR PROGRAM AS US FORCES STRIKE 3 KEY SITES
«Iran’s nuclear enrichment facilities have been completely and totally obliterated,» Trump said. «And Iran, the bully of the Middle East, must now make peace. If they do not, future attacks would be far greater and a lot easier.»
Vice President JD Vance, from left, President Donald Trump, Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth during an address to the nation in the East Room of the White House in Washington, June 21, 2025. (Carlos Barria/Reuters/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
Trump had repeatedly urged Iran to make a deal on its nuclear program before striking its nuclear facilities, but the country pulled out of ongoing talks with the U.S. scheduled for June 15 in Oman and refused to return to the table in the days following. Israel pre-emptively ordered strikes on Iran June 12 as Israeli intelligence indicated Iran’s nuclear program was rapidly progressing.
«A short time ago, the U.S. military carried out massive precision strikes on the three key nuclear facilities in the Iranian regime: Fordow, Natanz and Isfahan,» Trump said during his address. «Everybody heard those names for years as they built this horribly destructive enterprise. Our objective was the destruction of Iran’s nuclear enrichment capacity, and a stop to the nuclear threat posed by the world’s number one state sponsor of terror. Tonight, I can report to the world that the strikes were a spectacular military success.»
TRUMP PROMISES TO RESPOND WITH ‘FULL STRENGTH AND MIGHT’ OF US MILITARY IF IRAN ATTACKS AMERICA
«For 40 years, Iran has been saying, ‘Death to America. Death to Israel.’ They have been killing our people, blowing off their arms, blowing off their legs with roadside bombs,» Trump continued. «That was their specialty. We lost over a thousand people, and hundreds of thousands throughout the Middle East and around the world have died as a direct result of their hate in particular.»
The president said that the U.S. worked like a team with Israel in the lead-up to the strikes.
«I want to thank and congratulate Prime Minister Bibi Netanyahu,» he said. «We worked as a team, like perhaps no team has ever worked before, and we’ve gone a long way to erasing this horrible threat to Israel. I want to thank the Israeli military for the wonderful job they’ve done. And most importantly, I want to congratulate the great American patriots who flew those magnificent machines tonight and all of the United States military on an operation the likes of which the world has not seen in many, many decades.»
Caine told the media that the strikes Saturday evening were U.S.-led, while lauding Israel for its initial operations «degrading Iranian capabilities.»
«Israel had an incredible military success, especially at the beginning and ongoing in degrading Iranian capabilities, degrading Iranian launchers,» reusable ballistic missiles, Caine said. «It’s been incredible to watch what our ally Israel has been able to do.»
«But as it pertains to this strike, this was U.S.-operated and U.S.-led,» he added. «We took advantage of some of the preparatory work that’s been done over the past week and a half.»
Hegseth underscored that Trump is focused on securing peace in the Middle East following the strikes.
«As the president put put out last night, he wants peace,» Hegseth said. «There needs to be a negotiated settlement here. We ultimately demonstrated that Iran cannot have a nuclear capability. That is a very clear mission set on this operation.»
President Donald J. Trump in The Situation Room, June 21, 2025. (The White House via X)
Israel launched pre-emptive strikes on Iran on June 12 after months of attempted and stalled nuclear negotiations and subsequent heightened concern that Iran was advancing its nuclear program. Netanyahu declared soon afterward that the strikes were necessary to «roll back the Iranian threat to Israel’s very survival.»
The strikes were unexpected on Saturday evening, as Trump on Thursday said he would make a decision on Iran within the next two weeks, suggesting that such a strike would not unfold over the weekend. While six B-2 bombers that were spotted heading west from Missouri toward Guam on Saturday afternoon were decoys and part of the «misleading tidbits put out there to suggest that maybe President Trump had put off the decision,» Fox News Chief National Security Correspondent Jennifer Griffin said during an appearance Saturday evening as news broke of the strikes.
«Those six B-2 bombers that were heading west toward Guam, they would not have made it to Iran in time to take part in this strike,» she said while speaking with Fox News’ Bret Baier Saturday evening. «So, that suggests to me that there was an additional B-1 package that perhaps flew eastward from Whiteman Air Force Base. Again, this was all part of the deception. There was a great deal of sort of misleading tidbits put out there to suggest that maybe President Trump had put off the decision and that this would happen two weeks from now.»
Trump earned bipartisan praise from Congressional lawmakers for taking action to prevent Iran, the world’s leading sponsor of terrorism, from achieving nuclear capabilities.
Other members of Congress, however, simultaneously criticized Trump for not asking for Congressional approval ahead of the military strikes and raised concerns of the risk of war.
ISRAEL’S ACTIONS AGAINST IRAN CREATE STRATEGIC OPPORTUNITY FOR US IN NUCLEAR TALKS, EXPERTS SAY
Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has yet to comment on the strikes. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, however, said that diplomacy is an unlikely option in the wake of the U.S. strikes.
Iranian flags fly as fire and smoke from an Israeli attack on Sharan Oil depot rise, following Israeli strikes on Iran, in Tehran, Iran, June 15, 2025. (Majid Asgaripour/WANA (West Asia News Agency) via Reuters)
«Last week, we were in negotiations with the US when Israel decided to blow up that diplomacy. This week, we held talks with the E3/EU when the US decided to blow up that diplomacy,» Araghchi wrote on X. «What conclusion would you draw?»
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Araghchi said he’ll travel to Moscow later Sunday to meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin, with whom Iran enjoys «a strategic partnership.»
Hegseth said on Sunday during the press conference that correspondence with Iran is being conducted both publicly and privately to pursue a deal for peace.
«I can only confirm that there are both public and private messages being directly delivered to the Iranians in multiple channels, giving them every opportunity to come to the table. They understand precisely what the American position is. Precisely, what steps they can take to allow for peace,» the secretary of defense said. «And we hope they do so.»
INTERNACIONAL
Merkley nearly breaks Booker’s filibuster record, wins his praise for fighting ‘Trump’s authoritarian tactics’
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Democrats pulled out all the stops on Wednesday to delay the vote on a short-term spending bill to reopen the government — the 12th time the Senate has considered the measure since the government entered a shutdown on Oct. 1.
Sen. Jeff Merkley, D-Ore., embarked on a nearly 24-hour speech at 6:23 p.m. on Tuesday, concluding his remarks at 5:00 p.m. the next day. Merkley, 68, warned viewers of the authoritarianism he said had become a facet of the Trump administration.
«Be aware and worried about the possibility of the use of an emergency in order to expand authoritarian power. That’s the position we’re in now in the United States of America. Authoritarianism with a rubber-stamp Congress, a court that’s delivering more and more power to the executive and an executive who has a well-planned strategy,» Merkley said in his remarks.
JOHNSON WARNS US ‘BARRELING TOWARD ONE OF THE LONGEST SHUTDOWNS’ IN HISTORY
Sen. Jeff Merkley, D-Ore., speaks to reporters following a weekly Senate Democratic policy luncheon at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, Feb. 19, 2025. (Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)
«Republicans have shut down the government to continue the strategy of slashing Americans’ healthcare,» he said.
His speech comes as lawmakers remain gridlocked over federal funding for 2026. Whereas Republicans in the House of Representatives have passed a short-term funding bill to keep the government open through Nov. 21, Democrats in the Senate have voted a dozen times to defeat the package.
The Senate once again failed to advance the package on Wednesday. It failed in a 54-46 vote.
Democrats, led by Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., have demanded an extension of COVID-era supplemental funding for Obamacare healthcare subsidies that are set to sunset in 2025.
SCREAMING MATCH ERUPTS BETWEEN HAKEEM JEFFRIES, MIKE LAWLER AS GOVERNMENT SHUTDOWN CHAOS CONTINUES
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., right, update reporters following their face-to-face meeting with President Donald Trump and Republican leaders on the government funding crisis, at the Capitol in Washington, Sept. 29, 2025. (J. Scott Applewhite/AP Photo)
Republicans need the support of seven Democrats to overcome the 60-vote threshold to overcome a filibuster. The GOP holds 53 seats in the chamber.
Merkley, who came close to breaking Sen. Cory Booker’s 25-hour and 4-minute record that was set earlier this year, put the shutdown blame on Republicans throughout his discourse.
Booker praised Merkley’s stalling efforts online.
«Listening to Senator Jeff Merkley for over 22 hours, it is clear that we need to stand up for our democracy. We must continue to call out and counter Trump’s authoritarian tactics. Thank you, Jeff!» Booker said in a post on X.
BOOKER CONCLUDES RECORD 25-HOUR SPEECH AGAINST TRUMP, MUSK, MARKING THE LONGEST EVER ON THE SENATE FLOOR
On the issue of authoritarianism, which comprised the bulk of Merkley’s remarks, Merkley decried what he saw as the Trump administration’s attempts to push the limits on executive power — like its deployment of the National Guard to urban areas.
«If you remove a clear standard as to whether there is a rebellion and just say a president can deploy the military on a whim in places he doesn’t like against peaceful protesters to distract Americans or to exercise a suppression of dissent, then you have flung the doors open to tyranny. To a strongman state,» Merkley said.
National Guard members began patrolling Memphis in October as part of a federal task force established by President Donald Trump to combat what the administration says is violent crime in the city. (Brett Carlsen/Getty Images)
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President Donald Trump has deployed the National Guard to Washington, D.C., Los Angeles, Chicago, Memphis, and Portland, Oregon, citing a need to protect law enforcement and government operations in those cities.
politics,congress,senate
INTERNACIONAL
Escándalo en Italia por un posteo de Trump que dice que Meloni busca negociar un acuerdo secreto con EE.UU.
Un video que reposteó el presidente de Estados Unidos, Donald Trump, desató una tormenta política en Italia. El material asegura que la primera ministra Giorgia Meloni decidió romper con la Unión Europa y busca negociar un acuerdo comercial directo con Washington y sugirió además un recorte en el apoyo italiano a Ucrania.
“Giorgia Meloni desafía la UE y trata de obtener un acuerdo comercial directo con Trump. Bien hecho Meloni. Es una movida brillante”, comentó la activista ultraconservadora, Lynne Patton, autora del video que compartió Trump.
Leé también: Así fue el ingreso de Sarkozy a la cárcel: la despedida de Carla Bruni y el deseo de llevar dos libros El posteo que Trump publicó en sus redes y generó una fuerte polémica en Italia. (Foto: captura de X).
La oposición exige una respuesta urgente
Desde el primer momento, la oposición italiana salió al cruce y pidió una desmentida oficial. Francesco Boccia, presidente de los senadores del Partido Democrático (PD), y Piero De Luca calificaron la situación de “gravedad inaudita” y reclamaron que Meloni aclare su postura.
En la misma línea, Luana Zanella de Alianza Verde y Sinistra (Avs) expresó: “Esperamos que el miércoles la premier dé explicaciones en el Parlamento”. Por su parte, el vicepresidente de Italia Viva, Enrico Borghi, fue tajante: “Mientras en Italia se denuncia un video falso hecho con inteligencia artificial contra Donzelli, Trump publica un informe periodístico con supuestas declaraciones falsas de Meloni. La premier debe desmentir de inmediato al presidente de Estados Unidos. Si no lo hace, debemos asumir que el Gobierno quiere recortar la ayuda a Kiev y negociar unilateralmente los aranceles, pasando por encima de la UE. Sería gravísimo”.
Borghi fue más allá y advirtió: “Cada vez está más claro que Washington está usando a Palacio de Chigi como palanca para romper la unidad europea”.
El Gobierno italiano salió a desmentir
Ante la presión, el gobierno de Meloni emitió un comunicado para desactivar la crisis: «Las negociaciones comerciales, como es sabido, son competencia exclusiva de la Unión Europea y están lideradas por la Comisión Europea“.
Sin embargo, reconocieron que “desde hace tiempo existe un diálogo bilateral que acompaña la acción de la Comisión sobre los aranceles antidumping propuestos por el Departamento de Comercio de Estados Unidos contra algunos productores italianos de pasta”, indicó el Corriere della Sera.
Leé también: El video del robo en el Louvre: un turista filmó a uno de los ladrones cuando rompía una vitrina con las joyas
El vínculo Meloni-Trump y la aclaración oficialista
El diputado de Fratelli d’Italia y presidente de la Comisión de Finanzas de la Cámara, Marco Osnato, también se refirió al tema en una entrevista radial: «La relación entre Giorgia Meloni y Donald Trump es de colaboración muy estrecha. Por las palabras de Trump se entiende que considera a Meloni una socia confiable e importante, pero quiero aclarar que la misma buena relación se dio también con Biden. Nadie en Italia se casó con Trump ni es trumpista de la primera o la segunda hora».
Trump elogió la belleza de Meloni en la cumbre de Gaza. (Foto: REUTERS/Suzanne Plunkett).
El polémico piropo de Trump a Meloni
La semana pasada, Trump elogió la belleza de la primera ministra italiana, única mujer entre los dirigentes presentes en la cumbre de Gaza en Egipto.
“No tengo derecho a decirlo, porque habitualmente puede significar el fin de la carrera política si uno lo dice, pero ella es una mujer bella”, dijo en su discurso el mandatario estadounidense que copresidió la conferencia cuyo objetivo era garantizar el acuerdo entre Israel y Hamas para poner fin a la guerra en Gaza.
Trump dudó y luego dijo: “Me arriesgo”, buscando la mirada de Meloni.
“¿Dónde está? ¿No le molesta si digo que es bella? Porque es cierto”, afirmó el mandatario de 79 años, que se casó tres veces.
“Ella es muy respetada en Italia. Es una política muy exitosa”, añadió Trump. De pie justo detrás de él, la jefa de Gobierno se limitó a sonreír.
Donald Trump, Giorgia Meloni
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The U.S. government is aware of the kidnapping of an American Christian missionary in the West African nation of Niger, U.S. official sources told Fox News.
The sources told Fox News that they suspect that the missionary has been taken north to Islamic State-controlled areas where an offshoot of ISIS operates.
«We are aware of reports of the kidnapping of a U.S. citizen in Niamey, Niger,» a State Department spokesperson said in a statement to Fox News. «Since we were alerted of the situation, our Embassy officials have been working with local authorities. It is a top priority for the Trump Administration to look after the safety of every American, and we are seeing efforts from across the U.S. Government to support the recovery and safe return of this U.S. citizen.»
MINNESOTA MISSIONARY, A FATHER OF 5, KILLED IN ‘ACT OF VIOLENCE’ IN ANGOLA
Niger’s presidential palace in Niamey in 2023. The abduction reportedly took place only about 100 yards from the presidential palace. (AFP via Getty Images)
The missionary is a pilot for the evangelical missionary agency Serving in Mission, according to Reuters.
A general view of a crowded street market in Niamey, Niger, on May 17, 2023. The capital city has faced rising instability since the 2023 military coup that toppled President Mohamed Bazoum. (Michele Cattani / AFP via Getty Images)
TENNESSEE PASTOR KIDNAPPED AT GUNPOINT IN SOUTH AFRICA RECALLS ‘MIRACLE’ THAT SAVED HIS LIFE
The abduction took place only about 100 yards from the presidential palace in Niamey, where ousted President Mohamed Bazoum has been held since he was toppled by a coup more than two years ago, according to CBS News.
Following the kidnapping, the U.S. Embassy in Niger said it now requires all personnel to travel only in armored vehicles and announced that all restaurants and open-air markets are «off-limits».
Kidnappings appear to have intensified this year in areas of West Africa where militants operate. An Austrian woman was abducted in January in Niger, and a Swiss citizen was abducted in April in the same country, Reuters reported.
Niger’s junta leader, Gen. Abdourahamane Tchiani, salutes during an official ceremony in Niamey, Niger, on Aug. 26, 2023. Tchiani seized power in a July 2023 coup that ousted President Mohamed Bazoum and has ruled the West African nation since. (AFP via Getty Images)
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In addition, five Indian citizens working for a company providing services to Niger’s Kandadji dam project were kidnapped during an attack by armed men in April that also killed a dozen soldiers, according to the outlet.
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
Fox News’ Jennifer Griffin contributed to this report.
state department,terrorism,africa,world,crime,religion,india
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