Middle East Crisis Iran War

Uranium centrifuges may be hidden in tunnels – Trump warns of “a big blow”

According to Israeli intelligence, Iran moved thousands of centrifuges used to enrich uranium to the underground Kuh-e Kolang rock formation during the 12-day war last summer. The information has been shared with the United States, writes the Wall Street Journal.

The site has not been attacked during the war, but last week Donald Trump said for the first time that Kuh-e Kolang is “a possible target for a big blow”.

The site is located near Iran’s largest nuclear facility and has been on the US and Israeli radar for many years. Activity has been high over the past year, but exactly what is going on there is unknown.

Nate Swanson, who worked on Iran issues on the National Security Council during Joe Biden’s time, is worried. A secret nuclear weapons breakthrough from Iran would be the “worst possible scenario”.

– The fact that we cannot verify this facility underlines how problematic the current situation is.

Analysis: Pentagon dodges questions about Iran war

Donald Trump once again bypassed Congress when he ordered new attacks on Iran. Now Republicans are being pressured to support a budget proposal that would add tens of billions of dollars to finance the unpopular war, while the party risks losing its majority in the mid-term elections. This is what New York Times Robert Jimison writes in an analysis.

The escalation has also revived the debate about limiting the president's war powers. Last month, only a few Republicans broke with party lines and voted for a resolution urging Trump to end the war on Iran or seek congressional approval to continue it. However, the resolution was not legally binding.

In addition, the Pentagon and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth are avoiding answering questions about the new attacks, writes CNN's Brian Stelter.

“The Pentagon hasn’t held a press conference in two and a half months,” he writes.

That’s a departure from the regular press conferences held at the start of the war. According to Stelter, it suggests a broader effort to control the flow of information, limit transparency, and avoid difficult questions about the war.