JUST IN: CIA Issues Rare Statement Vindicating Trump On Iran Strikes: ‘Severely Damaged’

CIA Director John Ratcliffe on Wednesday took the rare step of publicly defending President Donald Trump, claiming that the bombing of Iran “severely damaged” its nuclear enrichment program.

Ratcliffe, who was appointed by Trump and is a former Republican member of Congress, has played a less prominent role in the administration’s public relations rebuttal of reporting suggesting that the bombing did little to stifle Tehran’s nuclear ambitions.

On Thursday, however, he cited a “body of credible intelligence” suggesting that President Trump is correct to characterize Iran’s nuclear program as being “totally obliterated.”

“CIA can confirm that a body of credible intelligence indicates Iran’s Nuclear Program has been severely damaged by the recent, targeted strikes. This includes new intelligence from a historically reliable and accurate source/method that several key Iranian nuclear facilities were destroyed and would have to be rebuilt over the course of years,” Ratcliffe said in a statement.

The agency is working with Israeli partners and confidential sources to further assess the long-term consequences on Iran’s nuclear program, he explained.

“CIA continues to collect additional reliably sourced information to keep appropriate decision-makers and oversight bodies fully informed. When possible, we will also provide updates and information to the American public, given the national importance of this matter and in every attempt to provide transparency,” he added.

Ratcliffe’s assessment follows another by Israeli intelligence forces concluding that Iran’s nuclear program has been set back by at least two years. President Trump has relied on the intel to rebut reporting by CNN and the New York Times.

The CIA analysis affords Trump a powerful tool to wield as he seeks to claim credit for a bombing that initially divided his most loyal allies into pro-war and isolationist camps. It is also another indication of how seriously the administration is taking reporting, suggesting that the bombing was not as successful as Trump claims.

On Wednesday, Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard made equally compelling claims that U.S. intelligence forces under her command have reached similar conclusions to those by the CIA.

“New intelligence confirms what @POTUS has stated numerous times: Iran’s nuclear facilities have been destroyed. If the Iranians chose to rebuild, they would have to rebuild all three facilities (Natanz, Fordow, Esfahan) entirely, which would likely take years to do,” Gabbard wrote on social media.

“The propaganda media has deployed their usual tactic: selectively release portions of illegally leaked classified intelligence assessments (intentionally leaving out the fact that the assessment was written with “low confidence”) to try to undermine President Trump’s decisive leadership and the brave servicemen and women who flawlessly executed a truly historic mission to keep the American people safe and secure,” Gabbard added Wednesday.

Gabbard’s remarks follow several days during which she stood in contradiction to the administration’s assertion that Iran was close to developing a nuclear weapon.

After Gabbard released a statement claiming that U.S. intel “continues to assess Iran is not building a nuclear weapon,” Trump publicly rejected her claim.

“She’s wrong,” he told reporters on Friday.

In addition to pushing reports by the CIA and Israeli intelligence, the White House has tried to change the narrative back toward hostile media outlets, furthering counterfactual claims about the bombing.

On Wednesday, President Trump prompted laughter from a large NATO gathering after he called on CNN’s Kaitlan Collins and suggested she focus more of her time reporting on the bravery of American troops. U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth singled out Fox News national security correspondent Jennifer Griffin during a press conference Thursday, accusing her of undermining the operation by injecting “deep state” counterclaims into her stories.