Despite Trump's chest-thumping, critical questions loom about how successful 'Operation Midnight Hammer' really was

There is simply a captious question down the events of the past fewer days.

Behind the chest-thumping from Donald Trump, and the bewilderment beyond astatine his statecraft-by-social-media, doubts person present reached fever transportation astir the occurrence of the American bombing of Iran's atomic sites.

Leaks from the US Defence Department suggest the bunker busting bombs dropped connected Iran's 3 atomic enrichment sites mightiness lone person acceptable the country's atomic capabilities backmost by months.

"We were assuming that the harm was going to beryllium overmuch much important than this appraisal is finding," said 1 of 3 sources, speaking to NBC News.

"This appraisal is already uncovering that these halfway pieces are inactive intact. That's a atrocious motion for the wide programme."

NBC News has spoken to 3 sources - each of whom accidental that the archetypal appraisal by the Defence Intelligence Agency has concluded that the US airstrikes were not arsenic effectual arsenic Mr Trump claimed.

Similar leaks were made to The New York Times, The Washington Post and CNN.

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Responding to the CNN leak, White House property caput Karoline Leavitt said: "This alleged appraisal is flat-out incorrect and was classified arsenic 'top secret' but was inactive leaked to CNN by an anonymous, low-level loser successful the quality community."

She continued: "The leaking of this alleged appraisal is simply a wide effort to demean President Trump, and discredit the brave combatant pilots who conducted a perfectly executed ngo to obliterate Iran's atomic programme. Everyone knows what happens erstwhile you driblet 14 30,000lb bombs perfectly connected their targets: full obliteration."

In his code to the federation connected Saturday night, Mr Trump had said: "I tin study to the satellite that the strikes were a spectacular subject success. Iran's cardinal atomic enrichment facilities person been wholly and wholly obliterated."

US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth has besides dismissed the leaks, saying: "Based connected everything we person seen - and I've seen it each - our bombing run obliterated Iran's quality to make atomic weapons.

"Our monolithic bombs deed precisely the close spot astatine each people - and worked perfectly."

"The interaction of those bombs is buried nether a upland of rubble successful Iran, truthful anyone who says the bombs were not devastating is conscionable trying to undermine the president and the palmy mission."

Battle Damage Assessments (BDAs) instrumentality a agelong clip to beryllium adjacent to conclusive and necessitate extended quality analysis.

Speaking to Sky News, erstwhile manager of the CIA and apical US General David Petraeus cautioned astir drafting ant conclusions astatine this stage.

"Well, the information is, it is conscionable excessively soon. And those who are leaking should cognize that it takes a agelong clip to bash the conflict harm assessment. And those who person really pushed backmost successful precise conclusive ways besides astir apt should person hold for the afloat results," Gen Petraeus said.

"This is simply a precise painstaking process. It's an effort by the wide quality community, not conscionable Defence Intelligence Agency. In fact, the CIA would beryllium the pb successful this effort to excavation each sources of intelligence, imagery, quality of each types, signals, cyber, adjacent open-source intelligence."

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Beyond the statement implicit the grade of the damage, questions stay implicit whether Iran mightiness person managed to determination instrumentality including centrifuges. Critically too, the whereabouts of astir 400kg of highly enriched uranium is unknown.

The classified appraisal of the military's cognition successful Iran has been transmitted to Congress and has been viewed by immoderate senators successful a unafraid location, according to 2 sources with nonstop cognition of the situation.

"I've reviewed the classified material," Democratic Party Senator Tim Kaine, a subordinate of the Armed Services Committee, said.

"I'm a small spot disappointed that my colleagues went and looked astatine it and chiefly started talking astir it publicly. That's not we're expected to bash with a classified report," helium added.

Speaking connected Sunday to NBC's Meet The Press, Israel's ambassador to the UN Danny Danon insisted Iran's atomic capableness had been dramatically acceptable back.

"I deliberation it's inactive precise aboriginal to leap into conclusions. We person to hold for the assessment. I tin archer you 1 happening for sure. If you look wherever Iran was 12 days agone and wherever they are today, you recognize that some Israel and the US were capable to degrade the capabilities, propulsion them backmost decades, and if we had an imminent threat, it doesn't beryllium anymore."