---
title: "Intercepted Iranian communications downplay damage from US attack, Washington Post reports"
description: "WASHINGTON, June 29 (Reuters) - Intercepted Iranian communications downplayed the extent of damage caused by U.S. strikes on Iran's nuclear program, the Washington Post reported on Sunday, citing four people familiar with classified intelligence circulating within the U.S. government."
type: "NewsArticle"
publisher: "Daily Maverick"
site: "https://www.dailymaverick.co.za"
section: "Newsdeck"
author: "Reuters"
author_url: "https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/author/reuters/"
canonical_url: "https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2025-06-29-intercepted-iranian-communications-downplay-damage-from-us-attack-washington-post-reports/"
published: "2025-06-29T20:54:22"
updated: "2025-06-29T20:54:24"
lang: "en-ZA"
word_count: 225
---

# Intercepted Iranian communications downplay damage from US attack, Washington Post reports

> WASHINGTON, June 29 (Reuters) - Intercepted Iranian communications downplayed the extent of damage caused by U.S. strikes on Iran's nuclear program, the Washington Post reported on Sunday, citing four people familiar with classified intelligence circulating within the U.S. government.

By Reuters · Published 29 June 2025, 22:54 SAST · Updated 29 June 2025, 22:54 SAST

## Key points
- As whispers of nuclear sabotage swirl, U.S. officials are caught between Trump's bombastic claims of obliteration and a cautious assessment suggesting Iran's ambitions might just be on a brief coffee break.
- A source confirmed to Reuters that Iranian officials' claims about nuclear damage are questionable and the intercepts are deemed unreliable.
- A leaked Defense Intelligence Agency report suggests the U.S. strikes may have only delayed Iran's nuclear program by months.
- President Trump maintains that the strikes "obliterated" Iran's nuclear capabilities, despite U.S. officials acknowledging the need for a thorough damage assessment.
- The White House dismissed skepticism from unnamed Iranian officials, asserting their nuclear weapons program is effectively over.

## Content

A source, who declined to be named, confirmed that account to Reuters but said there were serious questions about whether the Iranian officials were being truthful, and described the intercepts as unreliable indicators.

The report by the Post is the latest, however, to raise questions about the extent of the damage to Iran's nuclear program. A [leaked preliminary assessment](https://www.reutersconnect.com/all?search=all%3AL1N3SR107&linkedFromStory=true) from the Defense Intelligence Agency cautioned the strikes may have only set back Iran by months.

President Donald Trump has said the strikes "completely and totally obliterated" Iran's nuclear program, but U.S. officials acknowledge it will take time to form a complete assessment of the damage caused by the U.S. military strikes last weekend.

The White House dismissed the report by the Post.

"The notion that unnamed Iranian officials know what happened under hundreds of feet of rubble is nonsense. Their nuclear weapons program is over," White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt was quoted as saying by the Post.

In an interview broadcast on Sunday on Fox News, Trump reiterated his confidence that the strikes had destroyed Iran's nuclear capabilities. "It was obliterated like nobody's ever seen before. And that meant the end to their nuclear ambitions, at least for a period of time," he said on the "Sunday Morning Futures with Maria Bartiromo" program.

(Reporting by Phil Stewart and Katharine Jackson; Editing by Chris Reese)