US President Donald Trump on Wednesday claimed the American military has caused 'total obliteration' at three Iranian nuclear sites, including Fordow, Natanz, and Esfahan, setting the country's atomic programme back by "decades". Speaking at the NATO summit in the Hague, the US leader said Tehran won't be "building bombs for a long time."
US Secretary of Defence Pete Hegseth assessed the damage in Iran as "moderate to severe", while Secretary of State Marco Rubio insisted that the Islamic republic's nuclear program is way behind what it was before the US strikes.
"Anything in the world can be rebuilt, but now we know where it is. If they try to rebuild it, we'll have options there as well," Rubio said, adding that the FBI is investigating nuclear site leaks.
Crater appeared to have formed at the site of attack (Hi-res image here)
The latest high-resolution satellite images of the three key nuclear installations seem to support Trump's claim and show that US strikes may have sabotaged the Islamic Republic's atomic capabilities significantly. Satellite images taken on Tuesday of the uranium enrichment facility at Fordow show large craters, possible collapsed tunnel entrances and holes on top of a mountain ridge.
Damage to support building also seen at site (Hi-res images here)
They also show damage to a large support structure on the Fordow site, which may have been used by operators to control ventilation for the underground enrichment halls.
However, despite the damage seen in images, there were no reports of radiation release from the site, according to the UN atomic watchdog International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).
A cluster of buildings was also destroyed at Isfahan (Hi-res image here)
The American forces also joined Israel in attacking Iran's Isfahan Nuclear Technology and Research Centre, located 450 kilometres south of Tehran. Images of this facility also show extensive damage on site after the US bombing. A large cluster of buildings seems to be destroyed on the complex that houses essential laboratories and a uranium conversion facility, crucial for the initial stages of nuclear fuel production.
Tunnels at the Isfahan site seem to have been damaged (Hi-res images here)
Though no creator was seen suggesting a direct hit on the underground infrastructure, the entry to the tunnel has been damaged and blocked.
This facility was also targeted by earlier Israeli strikes, particularly the conversion plant, but the IAEA has found no radiation leakage or elevated radiation levels in the surrounding areas after any attacks.
Earlier images from the Natanz nuclear site, which was also targeted by the US, showed that key infrastructure, such as the substation, main power building, emergency supply, and backup generators, was also destroyed. However, no tradition was reported here either.
The IAEA monitors are still trying to assess the extent of damage caused by the bombing. However, Iranian lawmakers voted Wednesday in favour of suspending cooperation with the United Nations' nuclear watchdog, state TV said.
"The International Atomic Energy Agency, which refused to even marginally condemn the attack on Iran's nuclear facilities, put its international credibility up for auction," Iran's parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf said, according to state TV.
Ghalibaf said, "The Atomic Energy Organisation of Iran will suspend its cooperation with the IAEA until the security of the nuclear facilities is guaranteed."
