Preliminary US intelligence assessments suggest that last weekend's military strikes on three of Iran’s nuclear facilities, which followed earlier Israeli operations, did not achieve the "total obliteration" claimed by the Trump administration.
Instead, core components of Iran's nuclear program remain largely intact, with the strikes likely setting back the country's nuclear ambitions by only a few months, according to reports by CNN and The New York Times on Tuesday, citing officials familiar with the classified findings.
The Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA) assessment, a key component of the intelligence community's analysis, indicates a significant divergence from the White House's public statements. While President Donald Trump repeatedly asserted the strikes "completely and totally obliterated" Iran’s nuclear enrichment facilities, and Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth stated Iran’s nuclear capabilities "have been obliterated," the DIA's early findings present a more limited impact.
Sources familiar with the assessment told CNN that Iran’s enriched uranium stockpile was not destroyed, with much of it reportedly moved before the operations. Crucially, the centrifuges, essential for enrichment, are described as largely "intact." Damage to the targeted sites, including the Fordow Fuel Enrichment Plant, Natanz Enrichment Complex, and Isfahan, was primarily restricted to aboveground structures like power infrastructure.
The New York Times further clarified that strikes sealed off facility entrances but did not collapse deep underground buildings. Notably, Isfahan was targeted with Tomahawk missiles, as there was an understanding that the heavier bunker-buster bombs might not successfully penetrate its even deeper levels.
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt strongly rejected the CNN report.
“FAKE NEWS CNN STRIKES AGAIN: 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,” she wrote in a post on X.
“The leaking of this alleged assessment is a clear attempt to demean President Trump, and discredit the brave fighter pilots who conducted a perfectly executed mission to obliterate Iran’s nuclear program.”
“Everyone knows what happens when you drop fourteen 30,000 pound bombs perfectly on their targets: total obliteration,” Leavitt stated.
Meanwhile, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Dan Caine maintained a more cautious tone. Caine stated it was "way too early" to definitively comment on whether Iran still retains nuclear capabilities, even while acknowledging that the targeted sites "sustained severe damage and destruction."