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CIA Said Strikes on Metal Conversion Site Set Back Iran Nuclear Program Years
on June 30, 2025
(AP-Washington Post) Aamer Madhani -
CIA Director John Ratcliffe told senators at a classified briefing on Thursday that American military strikes destroyed Iran's lone metal conversion facility that would take years to overcome, a U.S. official said Sunday. The metal conversion facility at the Isfahan nuclear facility transformed enriched uranium gas into dense metal, or metallization, a key step in building the explosive core of a bomb. "You can't do a nuclear weapon without a conversion facility," Secretary of State Marco Rubio said last week. "It's gone. It's wiped out."
Ratcliffe also said the intelligence community assessed the vast majority of Iran's amassed enriched uranium likely remains buried under the rubble at Isfahan and Fordo, two key nuclear facilities targeted by U.S. strikes.
The CIA director also stressed that Iran's air defense was shattered during the 12-day assault. As a result, any attempt by Iran to rebuild its nuclear program could now easily be thwarted by Israeli strikes that Iran currently has little wherewithal to defend against.
Expert: China Unlikely to Replace Iran's Isfahan Uranium Conversion Facility
on June 30, 2025
(Jewish Insider) Lahav Harkov -
IDF Brig.-Gen. (res.) Yossi Kuperwasser, head of the Jerusalem Institute for Strategy and Security, noted that while Iran may be able to rebuild parts of its nuclear program from whatever remains of it, the Isfahan metal conversion facility was purchased from China, and Iran does not know how to build one itself. He posited that China would be unlikely to construct a new one for the Islamic Republic after the IAEA said it had a nuclear weapons program in violation of the Nonproliferation Treaty.
Israel "needs to remain vigilant" and "needs to eliminate any new kind of air defense Iran will try to build, in order to maintain freedom of action in the air. Israel needs quality intelligence about the details of what Iran is planning and how it may try to advance to break out and build nuclear weapons."
One significant achievement that has emerged from the war is demonstrating that the U.S. and Israel are willing and able to successfully attack if the threat from the Islamic Republic becomes acute. Israel "attacked and had aerial superiority in Iran for nearly two weeks and could have continued for as long as [it] wanted, had international legitimacy, and not just American support but involvement."
"Iran can build a new Fordow in three or four years; they were already working on more underground facilities, but what is the point if they know that the U.S. has an unlimited number of bombs that they can drop anywhere and are willing to use them?"
Iran Asks for "Payment of Compensation and Reparations" for War
on June 30, 2025
(AFP) Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi wrote to UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Sunday: "We officially request hereby that the Security Council recognize the Israeli regime and the United States as the initiators of the act of aggression and acknowledge their subsequent responsibility, including the payment of compensation and reparations."
Iran Rejects Request by UN Nuclear Agency to Visit Bombed Facilities
on June 30, 2025
(AFP) Iran on Friday rejected a request by International Atomic Energy Agency director general Rafael Grossi to visit facilities bombed by Israel and the U.S., saying that it was "possibly even malign in intent." The Iranian parliament has approved a bill suspending cooperation with the IAEA. Grossi had called for IAEA inspectors to be granted access to Iran's nuclear facilities so that they could establish what had happened to its large stockpile of highly enriched uranium.
Israel Says Iran Was Building Rockets Capable of Hitting London
on June 30, 2025
(Sunday Times-UK) Christina Lamb -
Iran has been building the biggest ballistic missile arsenal on the planet, producing one-ton warheads capable of reaching London, Israeli officials have warned. Oren Marmorstein, spokesman for Israel's Foreign Ministry, said, "Some of these are intercontinental, which are not for us." He said these had the range to reach European cities, including London.
Trump Lifts Sanctions on Syria
on June 30, 2025
(New York Times) Michael Crowley -
President Trump signed an executive order on Monday lifting most of the U.S. economic sanctions on Syria, despite concerns about its leaders' past ties to al-Qaeda. In May, President Trump met in Saudi Arabia with Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa, who assumed power in December. Sanctions would remain on former president Bashar al-Assad, who fled to Russia, and his associates, as well as others accused of human rights abuses, drug smuggling and terrorist activities.
The president's special envoy for Syria, Thomas J. Barrack Jr., said Monday that the U.S. would watch to ensure that al-Sharaa's government meets its commitments on matters like ensuring that terrorists do not take root in his country. But he added that U.S. officials would not be "nation-building" in Syria, nor "dictating" what Syrian society should look like.
IDF Restructures Access Routes to Gaza Aid Distribution Sites to Protect Palestinians
on June 30, 2025
(Ynet News) Elisha Ben Kimon -
The IDF is focusing heavily on separating Hamas from the broader Gazan population. Recently, Israeli forces restructured access routes to aid centers operated by the American NGO GHF - adding fences, boundaries, warning signs, new access roads, vehicle barriers, and redesigned layouts to allow visibility of remaining aid packages from outside the compounds. These measures are meant to ensure smooth and secure passage for residents, orderly distribution of aid, and uninterrupted operational activity.
Four aid centers have been opened so far, distributing over 50 million food packages. Flour prices are currently the lowest since the war began. Security officials have observed Hamas personnel collecting aid packages for their families.
Hamas Placed Bounties on American Security Personnel and Palestinian Aid Workers in Gaza
on June 30, 2025
(Jerusalem Post) The Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) announced Sunday that 12 of its local staff have been murdered, and others have been tortured. In addition, "Hamas has placed bounties on both our American security personnel and Palestinian aid workers - offering cash rewards to anyone who injures or kills them. The targets of Hamas's brutality are heroes who are simply trying to feed the people of Gaza in the middle of a war."
GHF said Hamas has "pre-positioned armed operatives near humanitarian zones in an effort to disrupt the only functioning aid delivery system in Gaza."
Gazans Testify that Hamas Intentionally Targets Aid Sites
on June 30, 2025
(Jerusalem Post) Gazans at humanitarian aid distribution sites testified in audio recordings that Hamas carries out acts of terror, propaganda, and psychological manipulation against civilians at aid sites, the IDF Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories said on Tuesday. Gazans say that Hamas fires at residents near aid distribution sites and spreads false claims about IDF fire, as well as publishes "fabricated data about large numbers of casualties," through fake footage.
Israel in "Advanced Talks" to End Hostilities with Syria
on June 30, 2025
(Times of Israel) Lazar Berman -
Israel and Syria are holding "advanced talks" on a bilateral agreement halting hostilities between the countries, a senior Israeli official told the Times of Israel on Monday. The contacts are focused on coordination around security matters. On Monday, Foreign Minister Gideon Sa'ar said that in any potential peace agreement with Syria, "the Golan Heights will remain part of the State of Israel." Israel captured the Golan Heights from Syria in 1967 and annexed the territory in 1981.
According to Syrian sources, the ongoing discussions indicate that the idea of ties with Israel "does not enjoy genuine consensus, even within the team loyal to Sharaa." Instead, figures close to Sharaa are urging American mediators to consider a more limited agreement that would declare an end to hostilities with Israel without progressing toward full peace. Pro-Turkish elements within Sharaa's inner circle fear that normalization would place Syria under significant Israeli and Saudi influence, marginalizing Ankara's role.
The Lebanese news channel LBCI said that Syria was not demanding the return of the Golan Heights in any potential peace agreement. A Syrian official told Israel's Channel 11 on Sunday that Syria has not brought up the issue of the Golan Heights in negotiations with Israel.
Syria's President Sharaa Seeks Strategic Partnership with Israel
on June 30, 2025
(Jerusalem Post) Peled Arbeli -
Dr. Col. (res.) Moshe Elad said, "A scene in which Ahmed al-Sharaa (Abu Muhammad al-Julani), the new president of Syria, and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu shake hands on the White House lawn is no longer a hallucination. Such a scene might happen very soon." This reflects a major shift in the region's power dynamics.
"Anyone who followed Sharaa's actions during the "12-day War" and expected him to disrupt the Israeli Air Force's operations over Iran was disappointed....Even if he had Russian S-400 missiles, it's unlikely he would have used them. Like Israel, Sharaa wants to weaken Iran, just like Saudi Arabia, Lebanon, Kuwait, Bahrain, and others." Elad believes Sharaa is seeking a strategic partnership.
"He is looking for an alliance with Israel. This is not a mirage. It's a reality that many fail to recognize, but it's unfolding before our eyes. When U.S. President Donald Trump hinted that 'big things' were coming in the region, and when his envoy Witkoff spoke of a "new alignment" in the Middle East, this included bringing Syria and Lebanon into the Abraham Accords."
"The direction is clear....Now that the Arab world has seen how Iran, despite its image, has been exposed as a paper tiger, a significant obstacle to Arab-Israeli rapprochement has been removed."
Where Are Things Headed with Iran?
on June 30, 2025
(Jerusalem Center for Security and Foreign Affairs) Oded Ailam -
In June 2025, following a series of Israeli strikes deep within Iran - which inflicted lethal damage on military, nuclear, and governmental infrastructure - the Islamic Republic found itself humiliated, surprised, and, above all, exposed.
But the regime's recovery was faster than expected. The Revolutionary Guards regained control through a ruthless wave of arrests, intense information filtering, and an influx of funds that sustains tens of thousands of people, including many who are not necessarily regime supporters but are economically dependent on it.
The recent round of negotiations, led by Middle East Special Envoy Steve Witkoff, was doomed from the start. It highlighted the gap between a Western rational, interest- and utility-based approach, and a jihadist ideological vision based on a dream that culminates in destroying the Zionist entity and imposing Sharia law on the West.
It is important to remember that regime change does not happen in headlines, but between the lines. Open external threats that unite Iranians around their leadership are counterproductive. Real regime overthrow must be conducted covertly: collaboration with opposition elements, support for subversive information networks, and funneling resources into centers of internal unrest.
The writer, former head of the Counterterrorism Division in the Mossad, is a researcher at the Jerusalem Center.
Twelve Days of War: What Did Israel Achieve?
on June 30, 2025
(Jewish Chronicle-UK) Emanuele Ottolenghi -
After 12 days of war between Israel and Iran, the ayatollahs have proclaimed victory. In their mind, they have downed Israeli F-35 stealth jets and captured Israeli pilots. They have turned Israeli cities to rubble. They have destroyed the largest U.S. airbase in the Middle East in retaliation for a U.S. strike they claim caused minimal damage.
In fact, Israel targeted every component of the nuclear weapons' program's supply chain: along with the enrichment plants it blew up factories assembling centrifuges; a heavy water reactor; and a conversion plant where enriched uranium could be turned into metal - a core component of a nuclear weapon. Military research centers linked to the nuclear program were also hit. At the 11th hour, the U.S. air force came to finish the job, targeting sites that were critical to Iran's ability to produce nuclear fuel. There were nearly 20,000 centrifuges installed in those facilities.
Israel's accomplishments are remarkable and have caught the attention of every military in the world. The display of might, precision, and ingenuity that American and Israel-made weapons showed stands in stark contrast with the weapons systems that should have defended Iran's most prized sites: all made in Russia, China, North Korea, and Iran. All wiped out by Israeli-made or American-made and Israeli-operated weapons systems.
Most importantly, the operation broke two taboos. Israel could attack Iran's nuclear program with impunity and succeed. And America joined in. If Iran's leaders seek to reconstitute their nuclear program, America and Israel will likely strike again.
The writer is a Senior Fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies.
Why Iran's Ayatollah Khamenei Is Again Preparing for War
on June 30, 2025
(Jerusalem Center for Security and Foreign Affairs) Yoni Ben Menachem -
As Iran is trying to recover from the powerful military blow dealt by Israel, for Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, protecting national pride and seeking revenge are guiding principles. His position is deeply rooted in ideological and religious convictions based on a perceived duty to protect the nation and the faith, including the right to have the final word - no matter the cost.
Khamenei's stance is grounded in Shiite religious doctrine, which holds that war is not merely a political matter but a religious mission. Total destruction of the enemy is part of the broader strategic and theological struggle. This prevents him from compromising even in the face of serious challenges, reflecting a deep conviction embedded in the country's leadership.
To Khamenei, the ceasefire with Israel is seen as an opportunity to regroup and devise new ways to surprise both Israel and the U.S. He regards his leadership as a divine mission and believes he alone can lead Iran on the right path.
The writer, a veteran Arab affairs and diplomatic commentator for Israel Radio and Television, is a senior Middle East analyst for the Jerusalem Center.
Iran Looks to Regroup and Rebuild
on June 30, 2025
(AP) Jon Gambrell -
"Iran's leadership has been dealt a heavy blow and will be conscious of preserving the ceasefire, which gives the regime breathing room and allows space to focus on internal security and reconstruction," the Eurasia Group said Wednesday.
Israel's campaign showed how much its intelligence agencies have infiltrated Iran. "There must be some sort of purge. But who will implement it?" said Hamidreza Azizi, a visiting fellow at the German Institute for International and Security Affairs. "This level of distrust that apparently exists now is going to paralyze any effective planning or security overhaul."
Ayatollah Khamenei also has to rethink the security policy he wove together over the past two decades. The "Axis of Resistance" alliances, seen as a defensive buffer intended to keep conflict away from Iran's borders, have now been shown to be a failure.
"Obliterating" Iran's Nuclear Sites Is Not Enough
on June 30, 2025
(Gatestone Institute) Khaled Abu Toameh -
The U.S. and Israel have "obliterated" Iran's nuclear installations, but the continuing rule of Iran and its terror proxies remains a major threat to security and stability in the Middle East. Iran's regime may have lost its nuclear sites, but it has not lost its appetite to kill Jews and wipe Israel off the map.
The Israeli and American military operations against Iran should be followed by a massive campaign to end the rule of Iran's current regime. Would the Allied forces have left the Nazi Party as the rulers of Germany after World War II? Allowing Iran's mullahs to stay in power means allowing their terror proxies to continue jihad (holy war) against Israel. Hamas, Palestinian Islamic Jihad, Hizbullah and Yemen's Houthis have not given up their dream of destroying Israel and replacing it with an Islamist terror state.
The goal of the Islamic Republic of Iran and its proxies is to destroy Israel and the U.S. It is a goal they are evidently determined to pursue, with or without nuclear weapons. It is time for the U.S. and its Western allies to understand that there can be no genuine deals or compromises with either Sunni or Shiite jihadists. When your enemies say they want to eliminate you, you have every right to eliminate them first.
The writer, a veteran Israeli journalist, is a senior fellow at the Gatestone Institute and the Jerusalem Center for Security and Foreign Affairs.
The IDF Reverted to Its Lightning War Tradition
on June 30, 2025
(Globes) Dean Shmuel Elmas -
The IDF reverted to its lightning war tradition against Iran, and in doing so showcased the prowess of Israel's defense industries. The Israel-Iran war became one of the most successful and impressive campaigns in Israel's history. For the first time since the Six-Day War of 1967, the IDF succeeded in a lightning war in neutralizing an existential threat to the State of Israel.
The ballistic missiles turned from an existential threat to a threat, and the Iranian nuclear program turned from an immediate existential threat into one that, if anything remains of it, is a problem for the distant future. Against Hizbullah, Israel activated the exploding pagers operation, eliminated senior Hizbullah figures, and hit terrorism infrastructures so fast that Hizbullah was compelled to agree to a ceasefire.
How Israel Killed Iran's Top Nuclear Scientists
on June 30, 2025
(Wall Street Journal) Laurence Norman -
When Israel's attacks on Iran began before dawn on June 13, nine of Iran's top scientists who had worked for decades on Tehran's nuclear program were killed in near-simultaneous attacks, according to people familiar with the attacks. 11 days later, hours before a ceasefire took effect, an attack in northern Iran killed another scientist, Sayyed Seddighi Saber, who was sanctioned just weeks ago by the U.S. for his nuclear weapons-related work.
The killings were the culmination of 15 years of efforts to wipe out the top cadre of scientists who worked on Iran's secret nuclear weapons program. Most of the people killed had hands-on experience in testing and building components of a warhead, like the detonation systems, high explosives and the neutron sources that trigger the chain reaction.
Iran Strike Encapsulates Trump Doctrine
on June 30, 2025
(Newsweek) Josh Hammer -
Trump has no interest in reprising the Bush-era moralistic nation-building enterprise, but he also has no interest in burying America's head in the sand and pretending that America simply has no interest in events abroad. After decades of debate about the Iranian nuclear program and months of hysteria about the alleged imminence of World War III, the U.S. has devastated the illicit nuclear weapons program of a terrorist regime that chants "death to America" on a daily basis - without a single American casualty, without any extended American troop presence on the ground, and with a quick post-strike ceasefire.
Israel Was Facing Destruction at the Hands of Iran
on June 30, 2025
(Times of Israel) David Horovitz -
The Iranian regime was increasingly convinced that it would soon be able to destroy Israel. The regime drew encouragement from the success of the Oct. 7 massacre which apparently confirmed Israel's vulnerability. Israel's military and security chiefs told the country's political leaders in recent months that Israel had to go to war against Iran not much later that June. The end of 2025 would be too late. Iran was a few weeks away from nuclear weapons, and the regime's fast-growing ballistic missile capability was rapidly becoming an existential threat as well. So Israel went to war and saved itself.
The IDF had assessed that Iran would try to fire 300-500 missiles in its initial response to an Israeli attack. That's why the order was given to alert the entire country, with screeching alarms on every cellphone as the Israeli attack began in the early hours of June 13. The Iranian reaction began only 18 hours after Israel's strike.
The regime is still standing, and its leader, Ali Khamenei, emerged from his bunker to proclaim that Iran had won the war. It did not. Israel maintained air supremacy over Tehran, and was selecting targets at will, with the capacity to continue to do so.
THAAD's Israel Deployment Proves Effective but Expensive
on June 30, 2025
(Globes) Dean Shmuel Elmas -
During 12 days of fighting between Israel and Iran, the U.S. carried out 60-80 interceptions from two THAAD batteries in Israel. This involved 15-20% of all THAAD interceptors in the world against Iranian ballistic missiles, costing more than $800 million. Each THAAD interceptor missile costs $12.7 million, much more than the Israeli Arrow 3 ($2 million).
While an Israeli David Sling interceptor missile costs $700,000, a Patriot PAC-3 interceptor costs $6 million. This system was the basis of the U.S. defense at the Al-Udeid base in Qatar.
Why Russia Fell Out with Iran
on June 30, 2025
(UnHerd) Dr. Ian Garner -
A decade ago, pundits were hailing Russia and Iran as the world's "new power couple." Since Russia's invasion of Ukraine in 2022, the relationship seemed only to be deepening. Military commitments have increased, as Iran sent thousands of Shared drones to aid the Russian army's aerial campaign against Kyiv.
Two recent events have shaken the Moscow-Tehran relationship to its foundations: first, Vladimir Putin's indifferent response to Israel and America's bombing of Iran; second, the leak of internal Russian documents that reveal a vast ongoing spying operation and deep mutual distrust between the purported allies. In a nutshell, Russia does not trust Iran and seems unready to offer its ally any military support.
There was never any realistic possibility of Putin offering military support. The Russian army is exhausted by the vast losses sustained in Ukraine. Even if the capacity did exist, Putin has long been careful to avoid provoking Israel, which is home to more than a million Russian speakers.
The writer is assistant professor of totalitarian studies at the Pilecki Institute in Warsaw.
Why Putin Won't Come to Iran's Rescue Against Israel
on June 30, 2025
(Washington Institute for Near East Policy) Anna Borshchevskaya -
Moscow has done little to help Iran beyond rhetorical condemnations of Israel and the U.S. and offers to mediate. Russian President Vladimir Putin empowered Iran and its proxies across the Middle East for years. Still, he chose not to come to Iran's rescue during the Israeli military campaign and targeted U.S. strikes against Iranian nuclear facilities.
His response is consistent with how the Kremlin views partnerships: prioritizing its own needs and avoiding over-commitment to anyone. Many commentators were quick to point out that Russia and Iran have a signed strategic partnership, but the agreement has no mutual defense clause, a point Putin himself made on June 18. Moreover, Russia no longer needs Iran for drone technology to support its war in Ukraine.
Putin would not be upset if the Iranian nuclear program were set back because it would only strengthen Russia's position vis-a-vis Iran. Russia has supported Iran's nuclear program since the mid-1990s by providing technical assistance and building nuclear power plants.
The writer is a senior fellow at the Washington Institute.
The Sight of Hundreds in England Chanting for "Death to the IDF" Crossed a Line
on June 30, 2025
(Jewish Chronicle-UK) Hen Mazzig -
This year, the Glastonbury Music Festival in southwest England offered a disturbing new performance - a chant: "Death to the IDF" - broadcast to millions by the BBC. For anyone with a modicum of historical awareness, this wasn't protest music. It was a chilling echo of a hatred as old as Europe itself. Some will say it's just a slogan, just theater. But history has taught us that these words are never "just words."
If this were simply about holding armies to account for harming innocents, where are the chants for "Death to the U.S. Army" for Iraq and Afghanistan, or "Death to the British Army" for the legacy of empire and more recent wars? No one at Glastonbury, or any British festival, would ever dream of it. The armies of these countries have killed far more civilians, yet are not reduced to symbols of existential evil in polite society. This rage, this fury, is reserved only for the world's only Jewish army.
The IDF is the fragile buffer between Jews and the abyss of history. We are not paranoid, the world has turn a blind eye to our genocide in living memory, and remind us today they would do it again. This is not an abstract fear. On Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas terrorists massacred hundreds at the Nova music festival in Israel while simultaneously targeting Jewish families in their homes. The IDF was all that stood between my family and absolute annihilation planned by Hamas.
Ultimately, these protests, these chants make Israelis feel like the entire world is against them, that any concession towards peace will inevitably come at the expense of their security, because the world will never support them. The message is unmistakable: you are alone, so you must fend for yourself. And so we will.
For Too Long, American Presidents Let Iran Believe It Could Act with Impunity
on June 30, 2025
(The Dispatch)
Lt.-Gen. (ret.) H.R. McMaster -
In my first year at West Point, I was part of a cordon of cheering cadets who welcomed back to American soil 52 people who had been held hostage by the Iranian regime for 444 days. The hostage crisis was just the beginning of what would become a four-decades-long "twilight war" that the Islamic Republic of Iran has waged against the United States, Israel, and its Arab neighbors.
The U.S. response, across seven different administrations, has suffered from a failure to consider adequately how historical memory, emotion, and ideology drive and constrain the theocratic dictatorship in Tehran.
The exception has been President Donald Trump, who from 2017 to 2021 implemented a strategy of maximum pressure on Iran, and in January 2020 decided to kill the commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) Quds Force, Qassem Suleimani, and his Iraqi militia puppet, Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis, in Baghdad. Trump recognized that the Iranian regime cannot be conciliated and that efforts to de-escalate confrontations with Iran had allowed it to escalate on its own terms with impunity.
On October 7, 2023, the Iranian-supported terrorist organization Hamas lit the "ring of fire" Tehran had built around Israel with heinous acts of mass murder, torture, rape, and kidnapping. Hizbullah entered the war against Israel the next day as Iran mobilized proxies in Syria, the West Bank, and Yemen.
The Israeli and U.S. military operations directly against the Islamic Republic and its war-making apparatus reminded officials in Tehran that they cannot antagonize their adversaries in the region with impunity - and reminded officials in Washington that Iran's theocratic dictatorship cannot be conciliated.
"De-escalation" was never a path to peace - it was an approach that perpetuated war on the Iranians' terms.
The writer, a former U.S. national security adviser, is a senior fellow at the Hoover Institution.
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