Iran's Khamenei claims U.S. strike didn't cause major damage to nuclear facilities
Iran's Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei claimed in a video message published on Thursday that the U.S. strikes on Iran's nuclear facilities had no major effect.
Why it matters: Khamenei's video marked the first time he has been seen in a week. His absence has raised concerns about his health and whether he remains involved in Iran's decision-making.
Khamenei is still believed to be hiding in the bunker, where he reportedly went amid fears of an assassination attempt from Israel at the start of the 12-day war between the two nations.
What they're saying: Khamenei said in his video message that the U.S. entered the war because it felt it had to save Israel from being destroyed.
"It entered the war to save it, but it did not achieve anything from this war. They attacked our nuclear facilities, but they were unable to do anything important," he said.
Khamenei claimed President Trump"exaggerated" the results of the U.S. strikes on Iran. "They could not do anything, they could not achieve their goal, and they are exaggerating to cover up the truth," he said.
He added that Iran "dealt America a hand slap in the face" by attacking one of the U.S. bases in the region and claimed that the Trump administration tried to minimize the damages caused.
"It is a major attack, and this can be repeated in the future. If an attack on Iran occurs, the cost to the enemy will definitely be high," he said.
Khamenei said Trump didn't want to destroy Iran's nuclear program but to force it to surrender to the U.S. demands, and said that "will never happen."
State of play: Despite Khamenei's claims, Israeli intelligence assessments say the U.S. strikes caused severe damage to Iran's nuclear facilities in Fordo, Natanz and Isfahan, that left the uranium enrichment system inoperable.
A new report by the Washington-based Institute for Science and International Security said that the Israeli and U.S. attacks "have effectively destroyed Iran's centrifuge enrichment program."
"It will be a long time before Iran comes anywhere near the capability it had before the attack," the report said.
Nevertheless, the report said "there are residuals such as stocks of 60 percent, 20 percent and 3-5 percent enriched uranium and centrifuges manufactured but not yet installed at Natanz or Fordow."
"These non-destroyed parts pose a threat as they can be used in the future to produce weapon-grade uranium," the report said.
Zoom out: The brief conflict between the two nations has come at a high cost for Iran's leader.
Khamenei is facing the loss of top military leadership, the near-total destruction of Iran's nuclear program, the deaths of key nuclear scientists, the elimination of half his ballistic missile force, and the near-collapse of the nation's air defenses.
The war ended with Iran at its weakest point since its devastating eight-year war with Iraq in the 1980s.
Israeli and U.S. officials both claim that it will take Iran years to rebuild its military power, reestablish its proxy network and restore its deterrence.
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