US intercepts Iranian call on damage to nuclear sites, as photos show likely repairs under way
Washington: An intercepted communication between senior Iranian officials suggests the United States did not inflict as much damage as anticipated when it struck Iran's nuclear sites earlier this month, despite US President Donald Trump claiming the assault 'obliterated' the facilities.
Satellite photographs taken since the strikes show repair and assessment work also appears to be under way at two of the three sites struck on June 22.
The intercepted Iranian communication played down the extent of damage caused by the strikes, The Washington Post reported, citing four people familiar with classified intelligence circulating within the US government. During the conversation overheard by the US, the Iranian officials wondered why the attacks had not been as destructive and extensive as anticipated.
But a source who declined to be named told Reuters that while the communication had been intercepted, there were serious questions about whether the Iranian officials were being truthful in their conversation, and described the intercepts as unreliable indicators.
The report by the Post is the latest to raise questions about the extent of the damage to Iran's nuclear program.
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A leaked preliminary assessment from the Defence Intelligence Agency cautioned the strikes may have only set back Iran by months, and the head of the United Nations nuclear watchdog, Rafael Grossi, concurred with that on Sunday, saying Iran may be able to enrich uranium again within 'a matter of months'.
But CIA director John Ratcliffe told sceptical US lawmakers in a classified hearing last week that the strikes had destroyed Iran's lone metal conversion facility, a US official said, meaning it would now take years for Iran to build a nuclear bomb.
Ratcliffe also told politicians that the intelligence community assessed that the vast majority of Iran's amassed enriched uranium probably remained buried under the rubble at Isfahan and Fordow, two of the three facilities the US struck.
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