Trump Says U.S. Strikes Obliterated Iran’s Nuclear Sites, Warns Iran Killing U.S. Troops

President Donald Trump said Thursday that “We attacked their nuclear sites and they were obliterated,” and argued that only the U.S. and China can retrieve enriched uranium from Iran’s buried nuclear sites.

“The War Between the United States and Israel Against Iran; Leading Scenarios and Constraints on Regime Change”

BBC

Trump told reporters in the Oval Office that “That mountain literally collapsed on top of it,” adding that the facilities were so badly damaged by strikes that recovering anything would be difficult.

BBC

In parallel, CNN reported that Trump said Iran killing US troops would cross a redline and that he would “do that very quickly.”

CNN also said Trump told reporters he would be open to meeting with Iran’s new supreme leader if there’s an agreement to end the war, while Iranian and US officials issued contradictory messages over the status of their ceasefire.

As Israel and Lebanon agreed to implement a ceasefire, DW reported that Hezbollah rejected the terms, with the group’s leader Naim Qassem demanding a “comprehensive” ceasefire and Israel’s withdrawal to pre-war positions.

DW also said Hezbollah rejected the ceasefire deal brokered by US and that Iran’s Quds Force demanded Israel’s withdrawal to pre-war positions in Lebanon.

CBS News

The Guardian reported that Hezbollah’s leader Naim Qassem called the plan a “roadmap to annihilate part of the Lebanese people” and demanded a complete ceasefire and withdrawal of Israeli troops from Lebanon.

In the same reporting, the Guardian quoted Hezbollah’s position that “As long as the occupation exists, the resistance will continue,” while Israel Katz said his country had “freedom of action, backed by the United States, to strike Beirut” in response to attacks.

CBS News said Kuwait reported that an Iranian missile and drone attack hit its international airport on Wednesday, killing one person and wounding dozens more, as the ceasefire between Iran and the U.S. looked increasingly fragile.

“• Fresh strikes in Lebanon: Israeli forces and Hezbollah fighters launched strikes just hours after Israel and Lebanon agreed to implement a ceasefire — hinging on an end to Hezbollah attacks — on Wednesday”

CNN

CBS also reported that Iran’s supreme leader Mojtaba Khamenei accused the U.S. and Israel of trying to sow “division” among Iranians after suffering a “decisive blow,” and said “everyone must, through steadfastness, insight, preserving unity and cohesion ... neutralize their sinister plot.”

Separately, DW said the IAEA flagged a “proliferation concern” over lack of access to verify nuclear material in Iran, noting that the IAEA has not had access to nuclear facilities in Iran since Israel and the US struck its nuclear sites last June.

DW added that the IAEA report urged Iran to inform the agency of the fate of its enriched uranium, and said the report is to be discussed at an IAEA Board of Governors meeting next week.