A second intelligence leak is casting doubt on former President Donald Trump’s assertion that Iran’s nuclear program has been completely destroyed. According to The Washington Post, intercepted audio of Iranian officials discussing recent attacks on their nuclear facilities suggests the damage was “less severe than expected,” despite the use of powerful 30,000-pound bunker buster bombs and Tomahawk missiles.
This marks the second intelligence leak in a week contradicting Trump’s repeated claims that Iran’s nuclear infrastructure was “blown up to kingdom come.” Trump reiterated these claims during a Sunday morning Fox News interview.
However, classified U.S. intelligence tells a different story. According to the Post, the intercepted conversation—intended to remain confidential—revealed that Iranian officials were surprised the U.S. strikes ordered by Trump hadn’t caused greater destruction. The paper cited four sources familiar with the intelligence.
Rather than denying the leak, the White House criticized The Washington Post for publishing the details, calling the information misleading and taken out of context.
“It’s disgraceful that the Washington Post is abetting criminal behavior by sharing selective leaks,” said White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt. “The idea that unnamed Iranian officials can assess what’s happening beneath layers of rubble is absurd. Their nuclear weapons program is finished.”
A senior U.S. intelligence official also dismissed the Post’s interpretation, warning that a single piece of signals intelligence doesn’t represent the complete picture.
The report didn’t clarify what level of damage the Iranian officials had originally anticipated.
Trump has pushed back strongly against critics, including Democrats and the media, who question the success of the strikes. He’s also reacted angrily to an earlier Pentagon leak suggesting the attacks only delayed Iran’s nuclear program by a few months, not years. Trump rejected claims that Iran had relocated much of its enriched uranium prior to the bombing, insisting such a move would have been too risky and unlikely.
“I don’t think they did,” he said on Sunday. “It’s very dangerous and hard to pull off… They had no idea we were coming.”
Experts, however, challenge Trump’s stance. Nuclear policy expert Joseph Cirincione told CNN that Iran could have transported its enriched uranium using just a few trucks.
Similarly, the head of the UN nuclear watchdog told CBS News that Iran likely moved its uranium stockpile and could resume enrichment activities within months.
