US intelligence report scales back claims on damage to Iranian nuclear facilities: Report
An initial assessment of the US strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities by the US Defence Intelligence Agency says that the main components of the programme remain intact and were likely only set back by months, CNN reported on Tuesday.
This flies in the face of Trump saying that the US air strikes “completely and totally obliterated” Iran’s nuclear programme.
The White House trumpeted its bombing of Iran’s Fordow, Isfahan and Natanz enrichment complexes as a major military feat that surprised Iran.
Israeli military’s chief of staff, Eyal Zamir, also said on Tuesday that Israeli strikes had set back Iran's nuclear programme "by years”. But like Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, he suggested the conflict with Iran could continue and was "entering a new phase”.
The leaked intelligence reports suggest much less damage was done.
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One source briefed on the assessment of the Department of Defense’s intelligence wing said Iran’s centrifuges are largely “intact”.
The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) said that just five days into the war, its inspectors lost track of Iran’s 409 kilograms of highly enriched uranium. That amount, which could be easily transported in a container by truck, is enough for 10 nuclear warheads if Iran were to pursue weaponisation.
“This alleged assessment is flat-out wrong and was classified as ‘top secret’ but was still leaked to CNN by an anonymous, low-level loser in the intelligence community,” White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told CNN in a statement.
An Arab official briefed on the matter told Middle East Eye that Iran had received advance warning of the US strikes. Amwaj Media previously reported that Tehran was notified before the US attacked.
Before Israel’s attack, Iran and the US were in talks to curb the Islamic Republic’s nuclear programme in exchange for sanctions relief.
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said on Tuesday that his country was willing to return to negotiations over its nuclear programme, according to state media.
Pezeshkian held calls with Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and UAE President Mohamed bin Zayed.
Pezeshkian told his Emirati counterpart "to explain to them, in your dealings with the United States, that the Islamic Republic of Iran is only seeking to assert its legitimate rights”, referring to its nuclear programme.
"It has never sought to acquire nuclear weapons and does not seek them," he was quoted as saying by the official IRNA news agency, adding that Iran was "ready to resolve the issues... at the negotiating table".
But the sting of US-Israel strikes could make restarting talks more difficult.
On Tuesday, Alaeddin Boroujerdi, a member of the national security and foreign policy commission in Iran's parliament, said cooperation with the IAEA should be suspended, the Iranian Students' News Agency reported.
'Victory'
Iran and Israel on Tuesday both declared “victory” after a US-brokered ceasefire ended 12 days of unprecedented conflict between the two foes, which culminated in the US bombing Iranian nuclear facilities.
"We have achieved a historic victory," Netanyahu said in a televised speech on Tuesday, as he warned that Israel could again strike Iran at its discretion.
"Iran will not have a nuclear weapon…We have thwarted Iran's nuclear project. And if anyone in Iran tries to rebuild it, we will act with the same determination, with the same intensity, to foil any attempt," he added.
But the Islamic Republic, the first country in the Middle East to go toe-to-toe with Israel since the 1973 war, also claimed a win.
Pezeshkian said Iran had achieved a "great victory”, according to state media.
Israel achieved air superiority over Iran, knocking out its air defence systems. It killed scores of senior Iranian commanders, destroyed energy infrastructure and military production sites.
But the Islamic Republic has set its benchmark on the fact that not only did it survive a war with Israel, but it also managed to strike major Israeli cities and military targets almost at will.
Iran will come away feeling that it's domestically produced weaponry was able to keep up with cutting-edge western technology, poking holes in the widely assumed superiority of Israel's air defence systems.
Israel and Iran’s victory posturing suggests the fragile ceasefire announced by Trump on Monday night is holding.
But despite the ceasefire mostly holding, the US president erupted in anger earlier on Tuesday, saying that Iran and Israel "have been fighting so long and so hard that they don't know what the fuck they're doing”.
Although his anger was directed at both countries, Israel bore the brunt of Trump's fury for what he said was military action jeopardising the ceasefire.
Trump accused Israel of bombing Iran after the ceasefire was announced and then preparing to launch massive strikes in retaliation for an Iranian missile that he said may have been fired “by mistake”.
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