The US strikes on three of Iran’s nuclear facilities last weekend did not destroy the core components of the country’s nuclear program and likely only set it back by months, according to an early US intelligence assessment. Via CNN:
The assessment, which has not been previously reported, was produced by the Defense Intelligence Agency, the Pentagon’s intelligence arm. It is based on a battle damage assessment conducted by US Central Command in the aftermath of the US strikes, one of the sources said.
The analysis of the damage to the sites and the impact of the strikes on Iran’s nuclear ambitions is ongoing, and could change as more intelligence becomes available. But the early findings are at odds with President Donald Trump’s repeated claims that the strikes “completely and totally obliterated” Iran’s nuclear enrichment facilities. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth also said on Sunday that Iran’s nuclear ambitions “have been obliterated.”
Two of the people familiar with the assessment said Iran’s stockpile of enriched uranium was not destroyed. One of the people said the centrifuges are largely “intact.” Another source said that the intelligence assessed enriched uranium was moved out of the sites prior to the US strikes.
“So the (DIA) assessment is that the US set them back maybe a few months, tops,” this person added.
Whiskey Pete says the report is "low confidence" and he's going on another leak hunt:
More now on those comments from Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth, who calls the US mission to strike Iran's nuclear sites "flawless", and adds: “Any assessment that tells you it was something otherwise is speculating with other motives."
He then directly references an intelligence report which suggests that Iran’s nuclear programme has only been set back by “a few months”. Hegseth says that report is “preliminary” and “low confidence”.
“This is a political motive here”, he adds and tells reporters that a leak investigation with the FBI is under way.
