Senior US defence officials have claimed that Iran’s nuclear infrastructure has been destroyed as a result of recent military strikes, contradicting early intelligence assessments that suggested only limited disruption.At a press briefing held at the Pentagon on Thursday morning, Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Dan Caine addressed a leaked report which indicated that the strikes carried out on June 22 had caused only a short-term setback to Iran’s nuclear programme.
The officials asserted that the strikes had successfully eliminated Iran’s key nuclear sites, aligning with statements previously made by US President Donald Trump.
“The president authorised the most complex and secretive military operation in recent history,” Hegseth said. “This operation resulted in a ceasefire agreement and brought an end to a twelve-day conflict.”
Hegseth added that the military action had created the necessary conditions to end hostilities, while simultaneously dismantling Iran’s nuclear capabilities. “Use whatever term you prefer — eliminated, destroyed — the fact is, they no longer exist,” he said.
However, these claims stand in contrast to an initial report prepared by the Defence Intelligence Agency (DIA), which described the strikes as a minor disruption. The report suggested that Iran could restore its nuclear facilities within a few months.
The precise impact of the strikes remains unclear, given the limited time that has elapsed since the operation.
President Trump has maintained that the American assault inflicted “devastating” damage. Speaking to reporters, he warned that questioning the effectiveness of the operation would not only amount to disloyalty but would also insult the pilots who conducted the mission.
As Hegseth and Caine delivered their remarks, President Trump urged his supporters on the Truth Social platform to watch the briefing, describing it as “the best, most professional, and most conclusive” press conference he had witnessed.
He also claimed that media outlets such as The New York Times and CNN would dismiss journalists responsible for publishing “FAKE” stories — a statement for which no evidence has emerged.
On Wednesday, CIA Director John Ratcliffe stated that the US attacks had severely damaged Tehran’s nuclear infrastructure.
“New intelligence, obtained through historically reliable means, indicates that several of Iran’s critical nuclear facilities have been destroyed and may take years to rebuild,” Ratcliffe said in a brief statement.US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on Thursday said he was unaware of any intelligence suggesting Iran had moved any of its highly enriched uranium to shield it from US strikes on Iran’s nuclear program over the weekend.
“I’m not aware of any intelligence that I’ve reviewed that says things were not where they were supposed to be, moved or otherwise,” Hegseth said.
After the strikes, several experts also cautioned that Iran likely moved a stockpile of near weapons-grade highly enriched uranium out of Fordow before the strike early Sunday morning and could be hiding it and other nuclear components in locations unknown to Israel, the US and UN nuclear inspectors.
They noted satellite imagery from Maxar Technologies showing “unusual activity” at Fordow on Thursday and Friday, with a long line of vehicles waiting outside an entrance to the facility. A senior Iranian source told Reuters on Sunday most of the near weapons-grade 60 percent highly enriched uranium had been moved to an undisclosed location before the US attack.
Hegseth’s comments denying those claims came at a news briefing where he accused the media of downplaying the success of US strikes on Iran’s nuclear program following a leaked, preliminary assessment from the Defense Intelligence Agency suggesting they may have only set back Iran by months.
Hegseth said the assessment was low confidence, and, citing comments from CIA Director John Ratcliffe, said it had been overtaken by intelligence showing Iran’s nuclear program was severely damaged by recent US strikes, and that it would take years to rebuild.
Iran's supreme leader has insisted the US "gained no achievements" from strikes on its nuclear facilities, in his first public address since a ceasefire with Israel was agreed on Tuesday.
Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said the strikes did not "accomplish anything significant" to disrupt Iran's nuclear programme, and described the retaliation against an American air base in Qatar as dealing a "heavy blow".
It came as Washington doubled down on its assessment that the strikes had severely undermined Iran's nuclear ambitions.
US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth said intelligence gathered by the US and Israel indicated the operation "significantly damaged the nuclear programme, setting it back by years".
Previously, US President Donald Trump said the strikes against three key nuclear sites inside Iran "totally obliterated" them, and has responded furiously to reports citing unnamed American officials suggesting the damage may have been less extensive than anticipated.
Speaking alongside senior general Dan Caine at a Pentagon press conference on Thursday morning, Hegseth said the mission was a "historic success" that had "rendered [Iranian] enrichment facilities inoperable".
During an at times combative exchange with reporters, Hegseth also said the US was "not aware of any intelligence" which indicated the enriched uranium had moved out of Fordo - the deeply buried facility which the US targeted with powerful so-called buster bombs - prior to the strikes.
Khamenei, who had been largely out of public view since direct conflict with Israel broke out on 13 June, released a televised address on Thursday morning, ending a week-long public silence.
The supreme leader has reportedly been sheltering in a bunker and limiting communications, which has sparked speculation about his whereabouts. Iranian authorities did not disclose where he was speaking from on Thursday, though a senior official acknowledged he was in a safe place earlier this week.
Khamenei used Thursday's video address to threaten to carry out more strikes on US bases in the Middle East if Iran was attacked again, and declared victory over both Israel and the US.
Khamenei said Trump had "exaggerated" the impact of the nuclear site strikes, adding: "They couldn't accomplish anything and did not achieve their objective."
Referencing the attack on the US air base in Qatar, Khamenei said: "This incident is also repeatable in the future, and should any attack take place, the cost for the enemy and the aggressor will undoubtedly be very high."
No one was killed during that attack, which Trump said had been flagged before it was launched. The US says the base was not damaged.
Map of northern Iran showing three nuclear facilities hit by US weapons. The map shows Tehran in the north and, moving south, the three targets of Fordo, Natanz and Isfahan. Fordo is annotated to say: “Bunker buster” bombs used on key nuclear site.
Direct confrontation broke out between Iran and Israel on 13 June, after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that "if not stopped, Iran could produce a nuclear weapon in a very short time".
A day earlier the global nuclear watchdog's board of governors declared Iran was in breach of its non-proliferation obligations for the first time in 20 years.
Iran has maintained that its nuclear programme is for civilian purposes alone and that it had never sought to develop a nuclear weapon.
On Thursday, Iran approved a parliamentary bill calling for an end to the country's co-operation with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), meaning it is no longer committed to allowing nuclear inspectors into its sites.
Iran's health ministry said 610 people were killed during the 12 days of air attacks, while Israeli authorities said 28 were killed.
The US became directly involved last weekend, striking facilities in Fordo, Natanz and Isfahan, before Trump sought to rapidly mediate a ceasefire between Israel and Iran.
The ceasefire appeared shaky at first, with Iranian strikes and Israel before an outburst from Trump. UN nuclear watchdog chief Rafael Grossi said on Wednesday that there was a chance Tehran had moved much of its highly enriched uranium elsewhere as it came under attack.
