Trump Chickened Out on Plan to ‘Truly Decimate’ Iran’s Nuke Sites
The president maintains the country’s nuclear capabilities were “blown up to kingdom come” after rejecting a more extensive campaign.
Anadolu/Celal Gunes/Anadolu via Getty Images
President Donald Trump passed on a chance to launch a sustained strike on Iran that could have fully dismantled the country’s nuclear program.
Months in the making, the plan was crafted by the commander of the U.S. Central Command, Erik Kurilla, a four-star general nicknamed “the Gorilla” and one of the few voices on the Middle East that Trump actually listens to, NBC News reported.
Instead of the one-night strike on three facilities, Kurilla proposed hammering six critical sites repeatedly over several weeks, which would “truly decimate” Iran’s nuclear capabilities, unnamed officials told NBC News.
Commander of the U.S. Central Command Erik Kurilla proposed hammering six critical sites in Iran over several weeks—a plan President Donald Trump rejected in favor of more targeted strikes.
Win McNamee/Getty Images
Trump was briefed on the more aggressive plan but ultimately rejected it because he didn’t want to risk dragging the U.S. into another long foreign war given that he has touted himself as the “president of peace” and pledged to rein in America’s foreign entanglements. Trump also reportedly worried that a drawn-out missile campaign could rack up heavy casualties on both sides of the conflict.
“We were willing to go all the way in our options, but the president did not want to,” a source told NBC.
Instead, Trump greenlit Operation Midnight Hammer, carried out on June 22, which targeted three nuclear sites in Fordow, Isfahan, and Natanz.
Get the best of The Beast delivered right to your inbox
By clicking “SUBSCRIBE” you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.
Officials believe the attack severely damaged the Fordow enrichment facility, setting Iran’s nuclear capabilities at the site back by as much as two years. But the damage at Isfahan and Natanz was far less extensive; Iran could have those sites back up and running within months, sources told NBC.
Officials said Donald Trump rejected the sustained attack as it would have contradicted his hopes to pull the U.S. out of foreign conflicts.
REUTERS
Trump has frequently overstated the success of the military operation even after a preliminary report from the Pentagon showed the attacks did not fully destroy all three of the targeted nuclear facilities.
“We destroyed the nuclear,” Trump said in June. “Iran will not have nuclear. We blew it up. It’s blown up to kingdom come.”
The Pentagon also seemed to walk back its earlier assessment of the damage to the facilities at Natanz and Isfahan in a statement to NBC News: “The credibility of the Fake News Media is similar to that of the current state of the Iranian nuclear facilities: destroyed, in the dirt, and will take years to recover,” chief Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell told NBC.
“President Trump was clear and the American people understand: Iran’s nuclear facilities in Fordow, Isfahan, and Natanz were completely and totally obliterated,” he added. “There is no doubt about that.”
White House spokesperson Anna Kelly further said that Operation Midnight Hammer “totally obliterated” Iran’s nuclear capabilities and that “America and the world are safer, thanks to [Trump’s] decisive action.”
The White House and the Pentagon did not immediately respond to a request for further comment from the Daily Beast.
See more of our coverage in your search results.
Got a tip? Send it to The Daily Beast here.
Register below to read this article for free or subscribe
to unlock unlimited access to The Daily Beast.
Monthly
$1
First month then $5.99/month
Annual
$35
First year then $59.99/year
Premium
$79
First year then $119.99/year
*Substack access provided by the next business day, using your subscription email. Choosing the Premium plan constitutes your permission to share your subscription email with Substack and your agreement to Substack’s Privacy Policy.
Already have an account? Sign In
Looks like you already have a subscription!
You're all set!
Thanks for subscribing.