NBC: US strikes destroy only one of three Iranian nuclear facilities

US strikes on Iran in late June destroyed only one of the country's three nuclear facilities. This was reported by NBC News, citing five current and former U.S. officials familiar with the new assessment of the operation.

One of the three uranium enrichment facilities in Iran that the United States struck last month was destroyed. But the other two were not as badly damaged, and perhaps only to the point where nuclear enrichment could resume within the next few months if Iran so chooses.

According to the four interlocutors, this assessment is part of the efforts of the administration of US President Donald Trump to determine the status of Iran's nuclear program since the strikes. The report was presented to some U.S. lawmakers, Pentagon officials and allied countries.

In a speech a few hours after the attack, Trump called the strikes he directed "a resounding military success" and said that "Iran's key uranium enrichment facilities have been completely and irrevocably destroyed".

Two of the interlocutors said that both the U.S. and Israeli governments have discussed whether additional strikes on the two less damaged sites might be necessary if Iran does not agree to resume the nuclear deal soon, or if there are signs that Tehran will try to resume work at these sites. Iran has long maintained that its nuclear program is exclusively for peaceful, civilian purposes.

The latest estimate is a snapshot of the damage caused by the U.S. strikes, amid an intelligence-gathering process that administration officials say will continue for several more months. The assessment of Iran's nuclear program after the U.S. strikes is expected to change over time, and as that process progresses, the data indicates more damage than previous assessments have found, according to two officials.

In his statement, Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell said: "The credibility of fake news media is like the current state of Iran's nuclear facilities: they are destroyed, covered in mud, and will take years to rebuild. President Trump has been clear, and the American people understand it: Iran's nuclear facilities at Fordow, Isfahan, and Natanz have been completely and permanently destroyed. There is no doubt about it".

The US strikes targeted three uranium enrichment facilities in Iran: Fordow, Natanz, and Isfahan. US officials believe that the attack on Fordo was successful because it set back Iran's uranium enrichment capabilities at this facility by two years.

According to the three interlocutors, U.S. officials knew before the strikes that Iran had enriched uranium at Natanz and Isfahan, which would likely be beyond the reach of even U.S. GBU-57 bombs. These munitions, which have never been used in combat, were designed for buried sites carved into the mountainside at Fordo.

However, as early as 2023, there were signs that Iran was digging tunnels in Natanz that were below the level that GBU-57 could reach. There are also tunnels deep underground in Isfahan. The United States has been hitting ground targets in Isfahan with Tomahawk missiles and has not dropped GBU-57s there, but has used them in Natanz.

• On July 10, 2025, Israel said that would strike Iran again if Tehran threatens it.
• On July 13, Iran announced readiness to resume negotiations on a nuclear deal with the United States if Tehran receives guarantees that there will be no new attacks.