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<h1 class="gmail-reader-title">'Israel\u2019s' nuke hype vs. US
intel: No active Iranian weapon plan</h1>
<div class="gmail-credits gmail-reader-credits">Al Mayadeen
English</div>
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<div class="gmail-reader-estimated-time" dir="ltr">June 17,
2025</div>
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<p>The US intel refutes Israeli claims of imminent Iranian
nuclear danger.</p>
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<a
href="https://alpha-en-media.almayadeen.net/archive/image/2023/3/2/26fc8af4-9394-44f5-9852-b09dce04955a.jpg?v=3&width=1000"
tabindex="0" moz-do-not-send="true"><img
src="https://alpha-en-media.almayadeen.net/archive/image/2023/3/2/26fc8af4-9394-44f5-9852-b09dce04955a.jpg?v=3&width=1000&preset=w700"
alt="A satellite image provided by Maxar Technologies shows Iran\u2019s Fordow plant. (AFP)"
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A satellite image provided by Maxar Technologies
shows Iran\u2019s Fordow plant <em>(AFP)</em>
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<p>As the <a
href="https://english.almayadeen.net/news/politics/20-arab--islamic-states-denounce-israeli-aggression-on-iran"
moz-do-not-send="true">Israeli occupation launched a
series of strikes</a> on Iranian territory last
week, it justified its actions by claiming Iran was
rapidly approaching nuclear weapons capability.</p>
<p>However, US intelligence officials offered a sharply
different assessment, concluding that Iran is not
actively pursuing a nuclear bomb and is likely still
years away from being able to build and deliver one to
a target of its choosing, <em>CNN </em>reported,
citing four people familiar with the assessment.</p>
<p>According to the officials, the US assesses that Iran
is at least three years away from developing a
deployable nuclear weapon.</p>
<p>One US official told <em>CNN</em> that despite the
extensive Israeli bombing campaign, including the
heavily damaged Natanz enrichment facility, <a
href="https://english.almayadeen.net/news/politics/iran-signals-no-new-concessions-in-nuclear-talks-with-us--ws/"
moz-do-not-send="true">Iran\u2019s core nuclear
capability</a>, particularly at Fordow, remains
largely intact.</p>
<p>Fordow, a fortified enrichment plant built deep into
a mountain, has not been significantly affected by the
airstrikes. Experts say the site cannot be destroyed
without advanced <a
href="https://english.almayadeen.net/news/politics/us-supplied--israel--with-1-tonne-of-bombs-used-in-gaza-mass"
moz-do-not-send="true">US weaponry, including
bunker-busting bombs</a> and B-2 bombers, which the
Israeli military does not possess.</p>
<h2>Fordow facility remains untouched, raises military
dilemma</h2>
<p>\u201cIsrael can hover over those nuclear facilities,
render them inoperable, but if you really want to
dismantle them it\u2019s either a US military strike or a
deal,\u201d said Brett McGurk, a former US diplomat and
Middle East expert.</p>
<p>The Trump administration faces a growing dilemma:
while publicly distancing itself from the Israeli
military operation, it acknowledges that only the US
military has the capacity to eliminate key parts of
Iran\u2019s nuclear infrastructure, especially Fordow.</p>
<p>Trump told <em>ABC News</em>, \u201cWe\u2019re not involved in
it. It\u2019s possible we could get involved. But we are
not at this moment involved,\u201d reflecting internal
White House tensions between isolationist advisers and
hawkish <a
href="https://english.almayadeen.net/news/politics/at-unsc-session--iran-accuses-us-of-complicity-in-israeli-ag"
moz-do-not-send="true">Republican allies pushing for
stronger support for "Israel"</a>.</p>
<p>At the recent G7 summit in Canada, Trump urged Iran
and "Israel" to enter negotiations \u201cbefore it\u2019s too
late.\u201d While taking a typical favorable stance toward
"Israel", Trump has made clear that Iran must agree to
strict nuclear curbs. \u201cSimply stated, IRAN CAN NOT
HAVE A NUCLEAR WEAPON,\u201d he posted on Truth Social,
reiterating his call for Tehran residents to evacuate
the city.</p>
<p>Meanwhile, Iran has informed mediators in Qatar and
Oman that it will not engage in talks while under
active attack from "Israel". Tehran\u2019s stance suggests
that any US-brokered resolution is unlikely in the
short term, as airstrikes continue and casualties
mount.</p>
<p>The US military is repositioning assets in response
to the intensifying war. The <a
href="https://english.almayadeen.net/news/politics/us-aircraft-carrier-leaves-red-sea-amid-yemeni-pause-in-gaza"
moz-do-not-send="true">USS Nimitz Carrier Strike
Group</a> has been ordered to the Middle East
\u201cwithout delay", a US official confirmed. Naval forces
capable of intercepting ballistic missiles are also
moving toward the eastern Mediterranean, where US
warships have already defended "Israel" against
missile attacks on at least two occasions over the
weekend.</p>
<h3>Intelligence gap widens as IAEA warns of uranium
stockpile</h3>
<p>The divergence in assessments between "Israel" and
the US intelligence community is not new. In March,
Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard
testified before Congress that Iran had not resumed
work on a nuclear weapons program since halting it in
2003.</p>
<p>Yet <a
href="https://english.almayadeen.net/news/politics/us-imposes-sanctions-on-icc-judges-over-netanyahu-arrest-war"
moz-do-not-send="true">Israeli occupation Prime
Minister Benjamin Netanyahu</a> insisted during a <em>Fox
News</em> interview that the intelligence "shared
with the United States" clearly indicated that Iran
was \u201cworking in a secret plan to weaponize uranium.\u201d</p>
<p>A satellite image released on June 14 showed no
visible damage to the <a
href="https://english.almayadeen.net/news/politics/iran-s-fordow-facility-ultimate-test-of-israeli-airpower--ft"
moz-do-not-send="true">Fordow Fuel Enrichment Plant</a>,
reinforcing fears that the Israeli strikes have not
achieved their strategic goal.</p>
<p>\u201cIf this ends with Fordow intact, you could actually
have a worse problem,\u201d McGurk warned. \u201cYou could
actually have Iran more inclined to go to a nuclear
weapon, and they have that infrastructure intact.\u201d</p>
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