US Launches B-2 Stealth Bomber Strike on Iran, CENTCOM Says

CENTCOM announced that U.S. B-2 stealth bombers carried out a mission against Iranian capabilities as part of an operation dubbed Operation Epic Fury, with the command sharing visuals and saying the bombers were “delivering long-range fire to not only eliminate the threat from the Iranian regime today, but also eliminate their ability to rebuild in the future.”

The strike is presented alongside growing U.S. force posture in the region, with multiple outlets reporting the deployment of thousands of Marines aboard amphibious ships that raises the prospect of a larger footprint and sustained operations in the Middle East.

Detroit News

Local reporting framed the deployments and strikes as signalling deepening American involvement in the two-week-old Iran war, noting the movement of expeditionary forces to the theatre.

Senior U.S. officials framed the strikes in uncompromising terms.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth told reporters that “all of Iran’s defense companies will be destroyed ‘soon, and very soon,’” and said the campaign was producing “the highest volume of strikes that America has put over the skies of Iran and Tehran,” with sorties and “bomber pulses” described as “ramping up and only up.”

Forbes

Hegseth made these comments alongside Gen. Dan Caine, identified in reporting as chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, while other reporting captured Hegseth asserting battlefield effects on Iranian leadership.

Reporting highlights the scale and assets involved: outlets note the raids included long-range bomber sorties and that the U.S. is positioning significant maritime and air-capable expeditionary forces.

“Creating new perspectives since 2009 March 13, 2026 at 8:01 pm The US B-2 stealth bombers”

Middle East Monitor

Coverage identified the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit—reported as carrying around 2,200 Marines aboard three amphibious ships—with organic F-35B jets and MV-22B Ospreys that could support resupply, assaults and troop insertion.

Other accounts reported roughly 2,500 Marines in an expeditionary force, underscoring variations in the reported size of the deployed units but a clear buildup of high-end capabilities.

Coverage also emphasised immediate human costs and operational risks: reporting noted a recent refuelling-aircraft crash over western Iraq that U.S. Central Command confirmed killed six U.S. troops, a loss that raised the United States war dead to 13.

At the same time, outlets pointed to the already large U.S. military footprint in the region—one report cited over 50,000 U.S. troops in the Middle East—underscoring how strikes and deployable expeditionary forces coexist with vulnerability to accidents and casualties.

Detroit News

Finally, reporting underlined uncertainty and the potential for a prolonged campaign: Middle East Monitor said the operation began late last month,

Forbes observed that the USS Tripoli could take roughly two weeks to reach the Middle East—timing that the outlet said could mean the war against Iran continues into April—while news accounts captured competing presidential remarks about the conflict’s end.

Forbes

Those combined details present a picture of an intensifying, active campaign with an uncertain duration.