US President Donald Trump announced on Wednesday that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth will hold a “major” news conference on Thursday morning in which he will present new information on the US strikes on Iran.
The news conference will follow Tuesday’s report in CNN and the New York Times which cited an internal US intelligence assessment suggesting Saturday's strikes would only delay Tehran's nuclear program by a few months.
In a post on his Truth Social platform, Trump wrote, “Hegseth, together with Military Representatives, will be holding a Major News Conference tomorrow morning at 8 A.M. EST at The Pentagon, in order to fight for the Dignity of our Great American Pilots.”
“These Patriots were very upset! After 36 hours of dangerously flying through Enemy Territory, they landed, they knew the Success was LEGENDARY, and then, two days later, they started reading Fake News by CNN and The Failing New York Times. They felt terribly! Fortunately for them and, as usual, solely for the purpose of demeaning PRESIDENT DONALD J. TRUMP, the Fake News (Times and CNN) lied and totally misrepresented the Facts, none of which they had (because it was too soon, there were no Facts out there yet!). The News Conference will prove both interesting and irrefutable. Enjoy!” he added.
Earlier on Wednesday, US Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard said it would take Iran "years" to rebuild the nuclear facilities that were struck by American B2 bombers over the weekend because they have been destroyed.
"New intelligence confirms what POTUS has stated numerous times: Iran's nuclear facilities have been destroyed. If the Iranians chose to rebuild, they would have to rebuild all three facilities (Natanz, Fordow, Esfahan) entirely, which would likely take years to do," Gabbard wrote in a post on X.
She criticized the reports that attempted to downplay the success of the American and Israeli strikes on Iran's nuclear sites.
"The propaganda media has deployed their usual tactic: selectively release portions of illegally leaked classified intelligence assessments (intentionally leaving out the fact that the assessment was written with 'low confidence') to try to undermine President Trump’s decisive leadership and the brave servicemen and women who flawlessly executed a truly historic mission to keep the American people safe and secure," she wrote.
Later in the day, CIA Director John Ratcliffe released a statement regarding Iran's nuclear program.
"CIA can confirm that a body of credible intelligence indicates Iran's Nuclear Program has been severely damaged by the recent, targeted strikes. This includes new intelligence from an historically reliable and accurate source/method that several key Iranian nuclear facilities were destroyed and would have to be rebuilt over the course of years,” he said.
“CIA continues to collect additional reliably sourced information to keep appropriate decision-makers and oversight bodies fully informed. When possible, we will also provide updates and information to the American public, given the national importance of this matter and in every attempt to provide transparency," added Ratcliffe.