White House rejects report saying Iran's nuclear programme survived US strikes
President Trump said the attacks "totally obliterated" Tehran's nuclear programme. However, a preliminary US intelligence assessment suggested that the damage may not have been that serious
Highlights:
- Trump claimed strikes "totally obliterated" Iran's nuclear program
- Intelligence report says only minor setback to Iran's program
- White House rejected the report as "flat-out wrong."
- Envoy Witkoff called the report "treasonous" and demanded accountability
- No independent evidence confirms extent of nuclear site damage
The White House has pushed back strongly against a recent intelligence report that says US airstrikes over the weekend did not destroy Iran's nuclear programme.
Over the weekend, the United States launched major airstrikes targeting Iran's nuclear sites. President Trump said the attacks "totally obliterated" Tehran's nuclear programme. However, a preliminary US intelligence assessment suggested that the damage may not have been that serious. According to the report, the strikes likely set Iran's nuclear efforts back by only a few months — not destroyed them, says the BBC.
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In response to the Defense Intelligence Agency's assessment, the White House strongly disagreed, calling the report "flat-out wrong" and "a clear attempt to demean" President Trump.
Trump's special envoy to the Middle East, Steve Witkoff, went even further. In an interview with Fox News, he said, "It's outrageous, it's treasonous and it has to be investigated. Whoever's responsible for it should be held accountable." He also claimed that after reviewing all the damage reports, there was "no doubt" that all three of the nuclear sites targeted were "obliterated."
President Trump showed support for Witkoff's statements by sharing a clip of the interview on Truth Social. In the video, Witkoff says, "We put 12 bunker buster bombs on Fordow. There's no doubt that it breached the canopy...and there's no doubt that it was OBLITERATED. So, the reporting out there that in some way suggests that we did not achieve the objective is just completely preposterous!"
As of now, there is still no independent proof showing exactly how much damage was done to Iran's underground nuclear sites. The debate continues between the intelligence community and the White House about the true impact of the strikes.
