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US President Donald Trump on Tuesday (local time) reiterated US Secretary of Defence Pete Hegseth's remark on the US "obliterated Iran's ability to create nuclear weapons," as reports on preliminary assessments from US intelligence indicate that Washington's military strikes on Tehran's nuclear facilities did not significantly damage the core of the Islamic Republic nuclear programme.
The findings, first reported by CNN, citing seven individuals briefed on the assessments, noted that the early evaluation from the Defence Intelligence Agency (DIA) suggested that the attacks only caused a temporary disruption, possibly setting Tehran's nuclear program back by a few months. CNN further reported that the findings based on a battle damage assessment by US Central Command contradict public claims made by US President Trump and Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth, who asserted that the US "completely obliterated" Iran's nuclear capabilities. "Based on everything we have seen - and I've seen it all - our bombing campaign obliterated Iran's ability to create nuclear weapons. Our massive bombs hit exactly the right spot at each target and worked perfectly. The impact of those bombs is buried under a mountain of rubble in Iran, so anyone who says the bombs were not devastating is just trying to undermine the President and the successful mission," Hegseth said, as quoted by CNN, which the US President also posted on Truth Social. However, as per CNN, citing intelligence sources, the centrifuges in Iran's nuclear facilities remain mostly functional, and enriched uranium stockpiles were likely moved before the strikes. The US strikes targeted Iran's Fordow, Natanz, and Isfahan nuclear sites, which inflicted heavy damage to above-ground structures, such as power infrastructure and facilities involved in uranium metal conversion, but failed to neutralise Iran's underground enrichment systems, as reported by CNN. As per CNN, citing officials, the US used its B-2 bombers that dropped over a dozen 30,000-pound bunker-buster bombs during the assault; underground components remained largely intact. Israel, which conducted their own strikes before the US operation, also found less damage at Fordow than anticipated; however, it was earlier believed that the combined efforts may delay Iran's nuclear ambitions by up to two years, as reported by CNN. CNN also reported the long-standing doubts over whether the US's Massive Ordnance Penetrators could penetrate Iran's deeply buried nuclear sites. Earlier on Saturday (local time), the US launched an attack on three key nuclear sites in Iran--Fordow, Natanz, and Esfahan. (ANI)
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