Trump blasts CNN, NYT over reports questioning Iran strike success

New Delhi: US President Donald Trump on Tuesday sharply criticized CNN and the New York Times, accusing both outlets of spreading “fake news” about recent US military strikes on Iran’s nuclear facilities.

Trump claimed the two media organizations were undermining what he called “one of the most successful military strikes in history.” 

Taking to his social media platform, Truth Social, Trump wrote: “FAKE NEWS CNN, TOGETHER WITH THE FAILING NEW YORK TIMES, HAVE TEAMED UP IN AN ATTEMPT TO DEMEAN ONE OF THE MOST SUCCESSFUL MILITARY STRIKES IN HISTORY. THE NUCLEAR SITES IN IRAN ARE COMPLETELY DESTROYED! BOTH THE TIMES AND CNN ARE GETTING SLAMMED BY THE PUBLIC!”

His remarks followed reports by CNN and the New York Times citing a new, declassified US intelligence assessment suggesting the weekend operation, codenamed “Midnight Hammer”, did not fully dismantle Iran’s nuclear program, contrary to Trump’s public statements.

According to two people familiar with the Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA) report, Iran’s nuclear program has been set back only by a few months. The assessment, issued on Monday, found that while the US strikes at the Fordo, Natanz, and Isfahan nuclear sites inflicted significant damage, the sites were not completely destroyed. 

The sources, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the DIA’s conclusions contradicted claims by both Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

The intelligence report also revealed that Iran had managed to move some of its highly enriched uranium out of several facilities before the strikes. In addition, Iran’s centrifuges were reported to be largely intact. 

At the Fordo uranium enrichment plant, the entrance collapsed and some infrastructure was damaged, which will take time to repair, but the deeply buried facility itself was not destroyed.

One of the sources noted that earlier intelligence assessments had warned that a complete destruction of Fordo was unlikely due to its underground construction.

The White House responded forcefully, disputing the intelligence assessment as “flat-out wrong.” 

Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt stated: “The leaking of this alleged assessment is a clear attempt to demean President Trump, and discredit the brave fighter pilots who conducted a perfectly executed mission to obliterate Iran’s nuclear program. Everyone knows what happens when you drop fourteen 30,000-pound bombs perfectly on their targets: total obliteration.”

In recent days, including on Tuesday, Trump has repeatedly asserted on social media that the strikes left Iran’s nuclear sites “totally destroyed” and that Iran would never be able to rebuild them.

Echoing Trump’s narrative, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a televised address on Tuesday: “For dozens of years I promised you that Iran would not have nuclear weapons and indeed ... we brought to ruin Iran’s nuclear programme.” He called the joint US-Israel operation “historic” and thanked President Trump for America’s support.

The CIA and the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI) declined to comment on the DIA’s assessment. ODNI coordinates intelligence activities among the nation’s 18 agencies, including the DIA, which is responsible for producing intelligence on foreign military threats.

The DIA assessment was first reported by CNN on Tuesday.