Early reports indicate limited damage to Iranian nuclear sites, some of which are buried deep underground.
If those reports are accurate, it indicates the Israeli arsenal lacks the 30,000-pound Massive Ordnance Penetrator – also known as bunker buster bombs – which could potentially destroy the underground sites.
The U.S. has these bombs, but President Donald Trump has so far rejected requests by Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to join the conflict. Trump continues to seek a diplomatic solution.
“We have the ability to negotiate a successful peaceful resolution to this conflict if Iran is willing,” a senior White House official told Axios. “The fastest way for Iran to accomplish peace is to give up its nuclear weapons program.”
It’s possible that direct U.S. attacks against Iran could increase China’s role in support of Iran.
China could be already helping supply Iran according to a report Sunday in the pro-Israel news outlet JFeed. A second Chinese transport plane recently landed in Iran, the report said.
As Israel now defends its civilians from Iranian air attacks, Israel’s targets in Iran have been tightly defined and all related to Iran’s nuclear program, Boykin told show host Jody Hice.
“They have gone after anything that has anything to do with the facilities that house or help to construct the weapons that they're trying to destroy. The centrifuges are another issue that they have gone after because they need to destroy those so they can't make any more uranium,” Boykin said.
Boykin knows Iran well. He was directly involved in the 1980 Iran hostage rescue mission, officially known as Operation Eagle Claw. As a member of the Delta Force, he participated in this high-stakes operation aimed at freeing 52 American hostages held in Tehran after the Iranian Revolution.
First attack doesn't get Fordow
Without the necessary weaponry to complete the job Israel’s efforts may be a distraction more than destruction.
“There’s no way you can stop them, but you can set their program back and buy more time,” Boykin said.
The Fordow facility in Iran survived the bombing and remains a primary concern. It’s deeply buried inside a mountain and considered well protected against conventional air strikes.
Fordow is designed to hold 3,000 centrifuges and is used for uranium enrichment.
Complete destruction could leave Netanyahu weighing the question of a ground invasion.
Fordow’s survival means Iran retains a hardened, underground site capable of producing highly enriched uranium (HEU), a key hurdle in dismantling its nuclear ambitions, according to The Economic Times of India.
“It’s a matter of whether (Iran is) inclined to want to go through this again,” Jerry Boykin, a retired a U.S. Army general, told Washington Watch.
Early reports indicate limited damage to Iranian nuclear sites, some of which are buried deep underground. If those reports are accurate, it indicates the Israeli arsenal lacks the 30,000-pound Massive Ordnance Penetrator – also known as bunker buster bombs – which could potentially destroy the underground sites.
The U.S. has these bombs, but President Donald Trump has so far rejected requests by Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to join the conflict. Trump continues to seek a diplomatic solution.
“We have the ability to negotiate a successful peaceful resolution to this conflict if Iran is willing,” a senior White House official told Axios. “The fastest way for Iran to accomplish peace is to give up its nuclear weapons program.”
It’s possible that direct U.S. attacks against Iran could increase China’s role in support of Iran.
China could be already helping supply Iran according to a report Sunday in the pro-Israel news outlet JFeed. A second Chinese transport plane recently landed in Iran, the report said.
As Israel now defends its civilians from Iranian air attacks, Israel’s targets in Iran have been tightly defined and all related to Iran’s nuclear program, Boykin told show host Jody Hice.
“They have gone after anything that has anything to do with the facilities that house or help to construct the weapons that they're trying to destroy. The centrifuges are another issue that they have gone after because they need to destroy those so they can't make any more uranium,” Boykin said.
Without the necessary weaponry to complete the job, Israel’s efforts may be a distraction more than destruction.
“There’s no way you can stop them, but you can set their program back and buy more time,” Boykin said.
The Fordow facility in Iran survived the bombing and remains a primary concern. It’s deeply buried inside a mountain and considered well protected against conventional air strikes.
Fordow is designed to hold 3,000 centrifuges and is used for uranium enrichment.
Complete destruction could leave Netanyahu weighing the question of a ground invasion.
Fordow’s survival means Iran retains a hardened, underground site capable of producing highly enriched uranium (HEU), a key hurdle in dismantling its nuclear ambitions, according to The Economic Times of India.
“It’s a matter of whether (Iran is) inclined to want to go through this again,” Boykin said.
Actual effectiveness of the attacks is still being studied, but the time Israel has bought is significant because the attack was multi-layered, Boykin said.
“Regardless of what happens, their program has been set back. The things the Israelis went after were selected very carefully to include people. They killed leaders as well. They have destroyed centrifuges and different things that are involved in the making of the bombs, the delivery systems which would be the missiles that they have.
“I don’t think you can say they have destroyed it all, but they have destroyed enough that they don’t have to worry about it for the foreseeable future,” Boykin said.
At least nine Iranian nuclear scientists were killed along with at least 10 military generals, according to varying reports.
Boykin: Expect Iran to regroup
The New York Times called it a major blow to Iran’s military chain of command.
The military lost commanders who were “hand selected” not only for their leadership skills but also for their devotion to Shia Islam, Boykin said.
“They were close to the bureaucracy in Iran. Nobody has had the experience that these guys have had. It’s going to be very, very hard to replace them in the short term,” Boykin said.
At the end of the day the attacks may be only a setback back for Iran, the purchase of time for Israel.
“They’re going to be in a building period when this is over. I hope this discourages them to the point that they don’t want to start over again and go through this again. But I think that’s unlikely. I think they’ll try to build a program again,” Boykin said.
