The Associated Press reported on Monday that U.S. Central Intelligence Agency Director John Ratcliffe stated that Iran’s nuclear program “has been damaged in ways that will be hard to repair for years” following the American attack on Iran.
The agency quoted an official who requested anonymity, noting that Ratcliffe’s comments were made during a closed briefing after reactions from Democratic members of Congress regarding the U.S. attack on Iranian nuclear facilities.
Ratcliffe pointed out that even if Iranian uranium remains intact, the damage inflicted on facilities as a result of the attacks will weaken Iran’s ability to produce nuclear weapons.
In his briefing before Congress, he mentioned that the attack had destroyed Iran’s air defenses, enabling Israel to easily thwart Tehran’s attempts to rebuild its nuclear program.
On June 13, Israel, with U.S. support, launched a 12-day aggression against Iran, targeting military and nuclear sites, civilian infrastructure, and assassinating military leaders and nuclear scientists. In retaliation, Iran targeted Israeli military and intelligence bases with ballistic missiles and drones.
On June 22, the United States attacked Iranian facilities, claiming that it “terminated” its nuclear program. In response, Tehran bombed the American Al-Udeid Air Base in Qatar, leading Washington to announce a ceasefire between Tel Aviv and Tehran on June 24.
There is ambiguity and conflicting reports regarding the extent and ramifications of the damage to Iran’s nuclear facilities. Iranian president Masoud Bezhakian simply stated that the Israeli-American aggression did not achieve its objectives, without further clarification.
Tel Aviv and Washington claim to have destroyed the Iranian nuclear program and delayed it for years, while a leaked report from the U.S. Defense Intelligence Agency concluded that the American strikes only delayed it by a few months.
