Listing of countries bombed by the United States since 1945
More than 20 countries across Asia, the Middle East, Europe, Africa and Latin America have been bombed by the United States since 1945.
More than 20 countries across Asia, the Middle East, Europe, Africa and Latin America have been bombed by the United States since 1945.
The United States carried out extensive bombing of Japan and Germany in 1945 during World War Two, including the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
During the Korean War from 1950 to 1953, U.S.-led forces conducted sustained air operations over North Korea. In Southeast Asia, U.S. aircraft bombed Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia between the mid-1960s and early 1970s. U.S. government figures show that more than two million tonnes of ordnance were dropped on Laos alone during that period.
In 1991, the Gulf War marked a major air campaign against Iraq following its invasion of Kuwait. Reuters archives show that coalition forces led by Washington launched thousands of air sorties during the conflict.
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Subsequent U.S. air operations in Iraq occurred in 1993, 1996 and 1998, and again on a larger scale in 2003 during the U.S.-led invasion. Airstrikes continued in Iraq in later years as part of operations against the Islamic State.
After the September 11 attacks in 2001, the United States launched airstrikes in Afghanistan, beginning a conflict that lasted until 2021. According to data from the Armed Conflict Location & Event Data (ACLED) project, U.S. air and drone strikes continued in Afghanistan for nearly two decades.
Pakistan, Yemen and Somalia are also countries where U.S. forces have conducted drone strikes targeting militant groups.
Drone operations intensified in the 2000s and 2010s, with successive U.S. administrations expanding targeted strike programmes. ACLED data for 2025 indicates that U.S. air operations remain active in parts of Somalia and Syria.
Latest strike action
The most recent U.S. military strike activity is part of a large-scale joint US–Israeli offensive against Iran, launched on February 28, 2026. The campaign has involved coordinated air and missile strikes across multiple Iranian cities and military targets, including air defence systems, missile launchers and key leadership facilities.
U.S. Central Command has confirmed combat fatalities among American forces in the ongoing conflict zone, marking one of the first acknowledged deaths of U.S. service members in direct engagements with Iranian missiles or rockets.
Six U.S. service members were killed when Iranian forces launched missiles targeting a fortified U.S. tactical operations centre in Kuwait.
