No known intelligence that Iran moved uranium, US defense chief says
WASHINGTON: U.S. 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 U.S. strikes on Iran's nuclear program over the weekend.
U.S. military bombers carried out strikes against three Iranian nuclear facilities early Sunday local time using more than a dozen 30,000-pound bunker-buster bombs.
The results of the strikes are being closely watched to see how far they may have set back Iran's nuclear program.
'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 in an often fiery news conference.
Trump, who watched the exchange with reporters, echoed his defense secretary, saying it would have taken too long to remove anything.
'The cars and small trucks at the site were those of concrete workers trying to cover up the top of the shafts. Nothing was taken out of (the) facility,' Trump wrote on his social media platform, without providing evidence.
US strikes 'obliterated' Iran's nuclear ambitions, Pentagon chief says
Several experts cautioned this week that Iran likely moved a stockpile of near weapons-grade highly enriched uranium out of the deeply buried Fordow site before the strikes, and could be hiding it and other nuclear components in locations unknown to Israel, the U.S. and U.N. 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 that most of the 60% highly enriched uranium had been moved to an undisclosed location before the U.S. attack.
The Financial Times, citing European capitals, reported that Iran's highly enriched uranium stockpile remains largely intact since it was not concentrated at Fordow.
Hegseth's comments denying such claims came at the news briefing where he also accused the media of downplaying the success of the U.S. strikes following a leaked, preliminary assessment from the Defense Intelligence Agency suggesting they may have only set back Iran by months.
He 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 and would take years to rebuild.
Hegseth described the strikes as 'historically successful.' His comments came after Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said on Thursday that Iran would respond to any future U.S. attack by striking American military bases in the Middle East.
Khamenei, 86, claimed victory after 12 days of war, and promised Iran would not surrender despite Trump's calls.
Media 'hatred'
During the news conference, Hegseth criticized the media, without evidence, for having an anti-Trump bias.
'It's in your DNA and in your blood to cheer against Trump because you want him not to be successful so bad,' Hegseth said.
Trump says Iran's key nuclear sites 'obliterated' by US airstrikes
'There are so many aspects of what our brave men and women did that … because of the hatred of this press corps, are undermined,' he said.
Trump, who announced the press conference on Truth Social on Wednesday evening, praised it as: 'One of the greatest, most professional, and most 'confirming' News Conferences I have ever seen!'
On X, Hegseth thanked Trump for his praise.
During the press conference, the top U.S. general largely stuck to technical details, outlining the history of the bunker-busting bombs used. General Dan Caine, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, showed a video testing the bombs on a bunker like the ones struck on Sunday.
Caine declined to provide his own assessment of the strike and deferred to the intelligence community. He denied being under any pressure to change his assessment to present a more optimistic view of the U.S. strikes.
He also said he would not change his assessment due to politics. Uniformed military officials are supposed to remain apolitical and provide their best military advice.
'I've never been pressured by the president or the secretary to do anything other than tell them exactly what I'm thinking, and that's exactly what I've done,' he said.
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