Blitz Bureau
NEW DELHI: Amid reports that the US strikes on Iran’s nuclear sites had caused some damage to the Islamic Republic’s nuclear programme, the Central Intelligence Agency, confirmed on June 27 that the strikes by Washington had severely damaged Tehran’s key nuclear facilities and that it would take years to rebuild those structures. In an official statement CIA Director John Ratcliffe said, ” CIA can confirm that a body of credible intelligence which indicates that Iran’s nuclear program has been severely damaged by the recent, targeted strikes. This includes new intelligence from a historically reliable and accurate source/method that several key Iranian nuclear facilities were destroyed and would have to be rebuilt over the course of years.
Ratcliffe added that the CIA continues to gather intelligence and keep decision-makers and oversight bodies informed, promising that updates would be shared with the public when possible due to the national significance of the matter.
“The CIA continues to collect additional reliably sourced information to keep appropriate decision-makers and oversight bodies fully informed. When possible, we will also provide updates and information to the American public, given the national importance of this matter and in every attempt to provide transparency,” Ratcliffe added.
The CIA’s confirmation comes amid mounting reports of the scale and impact of the strikes launched by the US on those nuclear facilities on June 22, following a CNN finding that suggested that the strikes did not destroy nuclear sites in Iran.
