President Donald Trump insisted Wednesday that U.S. strikes delivered a crushing blow to Iran’s nuclear program despite a preliminary American intelligence assessment suggesting that the assault inflicted only a marginal setback.
“This was a devastating attack, and it knocked them for a loop,” Trump said as his administration deployed a phalanx of top officials to defend his claims that Iran’s nuclear program was “completely and fully obliterated.”
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said the leaked intelligence assessment, which said Iran suffered a delay of only a few months, was “preliminary” and “low confidence.” Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the officials who disclosed the findings are “professional stabbers.”
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