CIA announces Iran’s nuclear program is ‘severely damaged’
(MENAFN) CIA Director John Ratcliffe announced that Iran's nuclear program has suffered serious setbacks following recent U.S. airstrikes on key enrichment facilities. The attacks, which targeted Natanz, Fordow, and Isfahan on June 22, were carried out using bunker-busting bombs.
In a statement released Wednesday, Ratcliffe cited “credible intelligence” indicating that several major nuclear sites were destroyed and would take years to rebuild. He added that the assessment was based on sources considered historically reliable.
President Donald Trump and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth had earlier asserted that the strikes had “obliterated” Iran’s nuclear weapons capabilities. However, reports from U.S. media, referencing early evaluations from the Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA), suggest that while the program was damaged, it may have only been delayed by several months.
Despite the mixed assessments, Israeli officials reportedly told Axios that the impact was “very significant.” Trump, meanwhile, criticized the press for allegedly downplaying the operation, likening the strikes to the World War II bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
The attacks were part of a joint campaign with Israel, aimed at preventing Tehran from acquiring nuclear weapons. Iran maintains that its nuclear activities are purely civilian, and has pledged to continue uranium enrichment. Russia, for its part, condemned the airstrikes and accused the West of spreading misinformation about Iran’s nuclear intentions.
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