Early US intelligence report suggests US strikes only set back Iran鈥檚 nuclear program by months
Jun 24, 2025, 1:52 PM
The image above is a frame grab of a before and after interactive slider that compares Iran's Fordo nuclear facility before and after U.S. bombed the site. (AP Graphic)
Credit: ASSOCIATED PRESS
(AP Graphic)
WASHINGTON (AP) 鈥� A new U.S. intelligence report found that Iran鈥檚 nuclear program has been set back only a few months after a U.S. strike, and was not 鈥渃ompletely and fully obliterated鈥� as President Donald Trump has said, according to two people familiar with the early assessment.
The early intelligence report issued by the Defense Intelligence Agency on Monday contradicts statements from Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu about the status of Iran’s nuclear facilities. The people were not authorized to address the matter publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity.
According to the people, the report found that while the Saturday strikes at the Fordo, Natanz and Isfahan nuclear sites did significant damage, they were not totally destroyed.
The White House strongly pushed back on the assessment, calling it 鈥渇lat-out wrong.鈥�
鈥淭he 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鈥檚 nuclear program,鈥� White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said in a statement. 鈥淓veryone knows what happens when you drop fourteen 30,000 pound bombs perfectly on their targets: total obliteration.鈥�
The CIA and the Office of the Director of National Intelligence declined to comment on the DIA assessment. ODNI coordinates the work of the nation鈥檚 18 intelligence agencies, including the DIA, which is the intelligence arm of the Defense Department, responsible for producing intelligence on foreign militaries and the capabilities of adversaries.
The intelligence assessment was first reported by CNN on Tuesday.
