Obliterating Trump's "Obliteration" Claim

 

The narcissistic, sociopathic Malignant Fascist and his cult want to force people -- especially the media -- to echo his claim that last week's strikes on three Iranian nuclear sites resulted in their "obliteration," after he got out beyond his headlights in making that claim.  Now, a leading international expert on Iran's nuclear program is speaking out, and is contradicting the self-congratulating MF.  From the BBC:

"Iran has the capacity to start enriching uranium again - for a possible bomb - in 'a matter of months', the head of the UN's nuclear watchdog has said.

Rafael Grossi, head of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), said the US strikes on three Iranian sites last weekend had caused severe but 'not total' damage, contradicting Donald Trump's claim that Iran's nuclear facilities were 'totally obliterated'.

'Frankly speaking, one cannot claim that everything has disappeared and there is nothing there,' Grossi said on Saturday. [snip]

On Saturday, Grossi told CBS News, the BBC's US media partner, that Tehran could have 'in a matter of months... a few cascades of centrifuges spinning and producing enriched uranium'.

He added that Iran still possessed the 'industrial and technological capacities... so if they so wish, they will be able to start doing this again.'" (our emphasis)

As more is learned about the missing highly enriched uranium and undamaged centrifuges that Iran has in its possession, the better the understanding of their capabilities to restart their nuclear program.  But believing the MF's premature, typical over-the-top braggadocio about the "obliteration" of Iran's nuclear program is dangerous and divorced from reality.

(photo: The MF playing politics in the Situation Room. White House photo)

 

QOTD -- Undoing Decades Of Nuclear Diplomacy

 

"...You'll find no apologies for the odious Iranian regime here. It has destabilized the Middle East with pointless adventurism and provocation while engaging in some of the worst domestic political repression in the world. But this is now twice that the U.S. has pulled the rug out from under Tehran. First, the U.S. under Trump arbitrarily reneged on the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action in 2018, obliterating years of diplomacy and sending us down the path we find ourselves on today. This is to say nothing of the ongoing hypocrisy about Israel's undeclared and growing nuclear arsenal.

"Perhaps even more egregiously, President Trump hoodwinked Iran into a negotiation process only to bow to Israeli pressure and conduct airstrikes against Iranian nuclear facilities. Even as he was offering Tehran a two-week window to reach an agreement and leaving the door open for fresh talks, the president had already made the decision to launch a surprise attack. Israeli airstrikes even wounded one of Iran's lead nuclear negotiators.

"Even if you think those talks would have failed due to Iranian intransigence, it is hard to imagine anything more damaging to the future of nuclear diplomacy than a nuclear-armed country using purposeful misdirection to leave an NPT [Non-Proliferation Treaty] signatory defenseless against a sneak attack and targeting negotiators. Why would any country considering building these weapons ever trust the United States again? Why would they put their faith in the procedures of the NPT if they can simply be discarded by the world's military hegemon whenever it likes?" -- Prof. David Faris, in Newsweek, on the damage the Malignant Fascist has done to decades of nuclear diplomacy by his decision to bomb Iran's nuclear facilities, which the Defense Intelligence Agency pronounced still "largely intact" afterwards.  As someone who takes pride in not letting anyone know what he's thinking (or if he's thinking, more accurately), the Malignant Fascist has introduced a new level of instability into the issue of nuclear proliferation, much as his "TACO tariffs" have made the U.S. an unreliable trading partner.  The damage this dangerous buffoon is doing to our country and the world is without precedent in recent decades.

Defense Intelligence: Iran's Nuclear Program Still Largely Intact

 

Oops:

The US military strikes on three of Iran’s nuclear facilities last weekend did not destroy the core components of the country’s nuclear program and likely only set it back by months, according to an early US intelligence assessment that was described by four people briefed on it.

The assessment, which has not been previously reported, was produced by the Defense Intelligence Agency, the Pentagon’s intelligence arm. It is based on a battle damage assessment conducted by US Central Command in the aftermath of the US strikes, one of the sources said.

The analysis of the damage to the sites and the impact of the strikes on Iran’s nuclear ambitions is ongoing, and could change as more intelligence becomes available. But the early findings are at odds with President Donald Trump’s repeated claims that the strikes “completely and totally obliterated” Iran’s nuclear enrichment facilities. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth also said on Sunday that Iran’s nuclear ambitions “have been obliterated.”

Two of the people familiar with the assessment said Iran’s stockpile of enriched uranium was not destroyed. One of the people said the centrifuges are largely “intact.”

“So the (DIA) assessment is that the US set them back maybe a few months, tops,” this person added. 

So, the only obliteration that occurred was to any claim of competence by "DONAKD J. TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES" and his clown car regime and to any chance American "diplomacy" under these chaotic clowns would be taken seriously by friend and foe alike.  Speaking of clowns, here's what the Malignant Fascist's spokesliar had to say:

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told CNN in a statement: “This alleged assessment is flat-out wrong and was classified as ‘top secret’ but was still leaked to CNN by an anonymous, low-level loser in the intelligence community. The leaking of this alleged assessment is a clear attempt to demean President Trump, and discredit the brave fighter pilots who conducted a perfectly executed mission to obliterate Iran’s nuclear program. Everyone knows what happens when you drop fourteen 30,000 pound bombs perfectly on their targets: total obliteration.”

This Christofascist twit, who would otherwise never have the word "intelligence" associated with her, must think the 30,000 pound bunker busters were delivered by "fighter" pilots, not B-2 bomber pilots.  Expertise!  We know who's the true "low-level loser," Karoline-with-a-K. 

There's also this picture that's been circulated of vehicles lining up at the Fordow site days before the bombing, presumably to remove centrifuges and /or enriched uranium after the Malignant Fascist very helpfully issued his threats to obliterate it:

Iran thanks you for the heads-up, stable genius!

So, we'll wait and see what we see in the days ahead, putting more weight on professional intelligence services than the "feelings" of a cult leader and his professional parrots.

(Top photo:  Slim Pickens rides the bomb in "Dr. Strangelove."  bottom photo: Fodow site days before bombing / Maxar Technologies/AFP via Getty Images, via NY Post)