It appears Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth now hates leaks. On Wednesday, he said the FBI is investigating the leak of a classified intelligence report that contradicts President Donald Trump’s claims that US strikes “obliterated” Iranian nuclear facilities.
The Defense Intelligence Agency assessment, leaked to CNN and other outlets, found that weekend strikes on three Iranian nuclear sites likely set back Iran’s nuclear program by only months rather than destroying it completely. Trump has repeatedly claimed the strikes “completely and totally obliterated” Iran’s nuclear enrichment facilities.
“We’re doing a leak investigation with the FBI right now, because this information is for internal purposes, battle damage assessments,” Hegseth told reporters at a NATO summit.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt claimed the report was “flat-out wrong” and said it was leaked by “an anonymous, low-level loser in the intelligence community” that wanted to “demean President Trump.”
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To bolster the White House claims, CIA Director John Ratcliffe issued a statement claiming Iran’s nuclear program “has been severely damaged.” The White House also published a statement from Israel Atomic Energy Commission. It said that US strikes “destroyed the site’s critical infrastructure and rendered the enrichment facility inoperable.”
Congressional briefings scheduled for Tuesday were postponed, leading some Democrats to suggest the administration delayed them due to embarrassing content of the leak. “They don’t delay briefings that have good news,” said Rep. Mike Quigley, D-Ill.
Iran has demanded compensation for damage from the US strikes and plans to file a formal complaint with the United Nations, Deputy Foreign Minister Saeed Khatibzadeh said Tuesday. Iran called the strikes “unlawful aggression” and said it would pursue damages through diplomatic and legal channels.
Trump announced Wednesday that US and Iranian officials will hold talks next week, though Iran has not confirmed any such meetings. The president said at the NATO summit he was not particularly interested in restarting negotiations, insisting the strikes had destroyed Iran’s nuclear program.
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