A top-secret US intelligence assessment has determined that recent American airstrikes on Iran only temporarily hindered Tehran’s nuclear capabilities, contrary to former President Donald Trump’s declaration that the facilities were completely wiped out.
According to sources cited by American media outlets, the Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA) found that the strikes did not neutralize Iran’s uranium reserves or destroy its centrifuges, though they did seal access points to several facilities.
Despite these conclusions, Trump took to his Truth Social platform to vehemently oppose the narrative.
“THE NUCLEAR SITES IN IRAN ARE COMPLETELY DESTROYED!” he wrote in capital letters, accusing outlets like CNN and The New York Times of deliberately misrepresenting the outcome to discredit him.
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt acknowledged that the DIA report was authentic but described its findings as “flat-out wrong.”
She further criticised the leak of the classified document, saying it was “meant to sabotage Trump and belittle the success of the strike.”
“Everyone knows what happens when you drop fourteen 30,000-pound bombs perfectly on their targets: total obliteration,” Leavitt said in a post on X.
Trump’s Middle East envoy, Steven Witkoff, also defended the administration’s version of events on Fox News, asserting that Iran’s major nuclear sites, Natanz, Isfahan, and Fordo, were comprehensively destroyed.
“All three of those had most, if not all, of the centrifuges damaged or destroyed,” Witkoff said. “From the raw data we’ve seen, it could take Iran years to recover.”
The weekend military operation involved B-2 bombers targeting two nuclear sites with bunker-buster bombs, while a U.S. submarine launched Tomahawk missiles at a third location.
Trump hailed the mission as a “spectacular military success,” and Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth echoed that by stating the attacks “devastated the Iranian nuclear program.”
However, General Dan Caine, the top-ranking US military officer, presented a more restrained view, saying the damage was “extremely severe” but stopped short of declaring the facilities fully eliminated.
In response, Iran’s Atomic Energy Organisation chief Mohammad Eslami said the country had already implemented contingency measures and that plans were in place to resume operations swiftly.
“Our strategy ensures continuity of production and services,” he stated on state TV.
An adviser to Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, also warned, “The game is not over,” emphasising that Iran still retains enriched uranium stockpiles.
The strikes were part of a coordinated US-Israeli campaign that began on June 13, targeting Iran’s nuclear sites, top scientists, and senior military figures.
Trump, who had initially attempted to negotiate a new deal to replace the 2015 nuclear accord he exited during his first term, opted instead for direct military action.
General Caine noted the scale of the assault, revealing that over 125 aircraft were involved, including stealth bombers, fighter jets, refuelling tankers, and surveillance planes, alongside a submarine delivering missile strikes.