Washington (TDI): US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on Thursday said there is no intelligence to suggest that Iran relocated any of its highly enriched uranium stockpile ahead of American airstrikes targeting Tehran’s nuclear infrastructure.
The US military launched a wave of air raids last week, using over a dozen 30,000-pound bunker-buster bombs to strike three nuclear sites in Iran. The attacks, described by the Pentagon as highly precise, are now under close scrutiny to assess their impact on Iran’s nuclear ambitions.
“I’ve seen no credible intelligence indicating that any material was moved or hidden before the strikes,” Hegseth said during a heated press briefing. His remarks came amid growing speculation that Iran may have taken steps to shield key nuclear assets.
Standing alongside him, President Donald Trump backed Hegseth’s comments and claimed there had been no significant effort to remove anything from the targeted facilities. “Those vehicles at the sites? They were from crews pouring concrete, trying to seal the shafts. Nothing was taken out,” Trump posted on his social media platform, though he did not provide any direct evidence.
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Despite these assurances, several nuclear experts remain unconvinced. Citing satellite images from Maxar Technologies, analysts pointed to unusual movement at the Fordow enrichment facility just before the attack, including a long line of vehicles reportedly seen near its entrance.
Hegseth dismissed the early assessment from the Defense Intelligence Agency that the strikes may have set Iran back by only a few months. He said that estimate was “low confidence” and had since been overtaken by newer intelligence indicating more serious damage to Iran’s nuclear infrastructure.
CIA Director John Ratcliffe reportedly supports the revised view, suggesting that Tehran could need years to recover from the setback.
On Thursday, Hegseth, Ratcliffe, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, and General Dan Caine, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, held a closed-door briefing for all 100 US senators, according to Reuters.
Notably absent from the session was Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard, who recently drew criticism from Trump for suggesting there was no conclusive evidence Iran was pursuing a nuclear weapon.
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The Senate is expected to vote soon on a resolution that would require congressional approval for future strikes against Iran. However, the measure is not expected to pass.
During the Pentagon briefing, Gen. Caine focused on the technical aspects of the operation, including the bunker-busting munitions used in the strike. He played video footage of test blasts conducted on a structure similar to Iran’s underground facilities.
Farkhund Yousafzai is an Associate Editor at The Diplomatic Insight.
