• Economy
  • Editor’s Pick
Money Rise Today – Investing and Stock News
  • Investing
  • Stock
Editor's Pick

How close was Iran to a nuclear weapon before Israel’s strike on Tehran?

by June 13, 2025
written by June 13, 2025

Israel’s airstrikes on Tehran, Iran, on Friday morning marked a dramatic escalation in the proxy war between the two regional rivals, reigniting one of the most consequential questions in international security: Just how close was Iran to building a nuclear weapon?

While Israeli experts have warned for years that Iran was enriching uranium at a level that put it ‘weeks away’ from a nuclear weapon, in recent days, there has been a shift. According to Israeli intelligence sources, Iran was on the verge of assembling a crude nuclear device.

Beni Sabti, an Iran expert at the Institute of National Security Studies, told Fox News Digital the threat was urgent and specific: Tehran was pulling its materials together ‘in a secret place near Tehran to make a primitive warhead.’

Gregg Roman, executive director of the Middle East Forum, said that since the Trump administration reinitiated nuclear negotiations, Israel had been collecting fresh intelligence that raised alarm bells.

‘There were a few things that stood out,’ Roman said, referencing activity at the Times Enrichment facility. ‘Iran reactivated an explosives manufacturing line, which could only be used to help that needed nuclear weapon… efforts to put the fissile material into a shape which could be used for a nuclear weapon – that was reactivated as well.’

Roman added that these developments mirrored work Iran halted in 2003, when it froze its military nuclear program. 

Experts believe Iran is enriching uranium to 60%, which puts it just below the 90% needed for a nuclear weapon, and have said there is no civilian use for 60% enriched uranium. 

However, Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard told a Senate worldwide threats hearing in April Iran is not moving toward a nuclear weapon. 

‘The IC [intelligence community] continues to assess that Iran is not building a nuclear weapon and Khamenei has not authorized the nuclear weapon program that he suspended in 2003,’ she said. 

‘The IC continues to monitor closely if Tehran decides to reauthorize its nuclear weapons program. In the past year, we’ve seen an erosion in the decades-long taboo in Iran of discussing nuclear weapons in public, likely emboldening nuclear weapons advocates within Iran’s decision-making apparatus,’ Gabbard said. 

President Donald Trump on Friday noted he gave Iran a 60-day ‘ultimatum’ to make a deal, and Friday was day 61. Nuclear negotiations between Washington and Tehran were scheduled for this weekend, but whether those talks will carry on as planned remains unclear. 

Not everyone is convinced Iran is actively building a bomb. Rosemary Kelanic, a political scientist and nuclear deterrence expert, urged caution about the narrative coming from Israeli officials.

‘Those in favor of this attack, including Israel, are going to do everything they can to try to make it look like Iran was on precipice of a bomb,’ Kelanic said. ‘But we need to be really critical in our thinking.’

U.S. intelligence assessments, she noted, have consistently judged that Iran was not pursuing an active weaponization program, even though it possessed enough enriched uranium to build a bomb. ‘Iran could have built a bomb back in 2022 if not earlier, and chose not to. That’s the reason that I think they don’t have one now.’

However, Kelanic warned that the Israeli strikes might push Iran to reconsider that restraint.

‘Their best path forward now, tragically, is to run a crash program and test a nuclear device as soon as they possibly can,’ she said. ‘Super risky to do that, but then maybe they can establish some kind of deterrence from Israel.’

The competing intelligence narratives reflect deep uncertainty about Iran’s intentions and even more uncertainty about what comes next. While Israel argues that its strikes disrupted a dangerous escalation, critics fear they may have accelerated it.

Kelanic suggested that even if the U.S. and Iran had come to a deal on Tehran’s nuclear program, Israel may still have carried out strikes on Iran. 

‘They just wouldn’t trust that Iran would actually give up nuclear weapons, right?’ she said. ‘If you think that they truly can never have it, and it’s an existential threat to Israel, etc, then the only thing you can do is either completely wreck Iran as a functioning state, turn it into a failed state, unable to ever get nuclear weapons.’ 

For now, time will tell whether Israel’s strikes decimate Iran’s nuclear capabilities or the decades-long threat will continue. 

This post appeared first on FOX NEWS
0 comment
0
FacebookTwitterPinterestEmail

previous post
Inside Israel’s secret war in Iran: Mossad commandos, hidden drones and the strike that stunned Tehran
next post
Trump believes Israel’s strike on Iran could improve chances for nuclear deal: report

related articles

Essential workers left unpaid after Senate Democrats kill...

October 23, 2025

Democrats under fire as food stamp funds run...

October 23, 2025

Curtis Sliwa vows to be Zohran Mamdani’s ‘worst...

October 23, 2025

Vance visits church where Christians believe Jesus was...

October 23, 2025

New poll in key showdown for Virginia governor...

October 23, 2025

Americans could face airport chaos if Dems don’t...

October 23, 2025

Inside Trump’s ultimatum that forced Netanyahu to the...

October 23, 2025

Vance rebukes Israel on ‘very stupid’ vote to...

October 23, 2025

Top Republican slams Katherine Clark for admitting suffering...

October 23, 2025

Vance calls Psaki comments about wife Usha ‘disgraceful’

October 23, 2025
Enter Your Information Below To Receive Free Trading Ideas, Latest News, And Articles.


Your information is secure and your privacy is protected. By opting in you agree to receive emails from us. Remember that you can opt-out any time, we hate spam too!

Latest News

  • Tim Walz’s post-election listening tour revealed an all-American racial absurdity

    May 6, 2025
  • Israel vows to kill new Hamas political leader who plotted Oct. 7 massacre

    August 7, 2024
  • Wells Fargo faces lawsuit over alleged health plan mismanagement and inflated prescription costs

    July 30, 2024
  • Amazon Stock Outlook: Resistance at $186; Eyes $20B+ Savings

    October 10, 2024
  • Trump makes play for women’s vote, vows to ensure ‘powerful exceptions’ for abortion

    September 21, 2024

Popular Posts

  • 1

    Secret Service admits leaning on ‘state and local partners’ after claim it ignored Trump team’s past requests

    July 21, 2024
  • 2

    Five more House Democrats call on Biden to drop out, third US senator

    July 19, 2024
  • 3

    Forex Profit Calculator: Maximize Your Trading Potential

    July 10, 2024
  • 4

    Elon and Vivek should tackle US funding for this boondoogle organization and score a multimillion dollar win

    December 4, 2024
  • 5

    Biden calls to ‘lower the temperature’ then bashes Trump in NAACP speech

    July 17, 2024

Categories

  • Economy (829)
  • Editor's Pick (6,509)
  • Investing (634)
  • Stock (941)

Latest Posts

  • Asia markets close: Nikkei rallies, China slips despite strong exports; investors await US-Beijing dialogue

    May 9, 2025
  • 3 alleged Hamas members accused of plotting against Jewish institutions in Germany

    October 1, 2025
  • MAHA caucus member pledges hearings into ‘corruption’ of a public health sector ‘captured by Big Pharma’

    February 20, 2025

Recent Posts

  • Musk boasts of 1B views for ‘no limits’ X interview with Trump

    August 13, 2024
  • EXCLUSIVE: New GOP report accuses Democrats of trying to ‘undermine’ healthcare in government shutdown fight

    October 14, 2025
  • An interest rate cut is coming. Here’s what to do with your money beforehand.

    August 10, 2024

Editor’s Pick

  • On-Balance Volume (OBV) in Trading Explained

    September 19, 2024
  • Microsoft plans September cybersecurity event to discuss changes after CrowdStrike outage

    August 25, 2024
  • Trump Cabinet official vows major food stamp reforms that will help hungry children

    April 29, 2025
  • About us
  • Contacts
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms & Conditions

Disclaimer: moneyrisetoday.com, its managers, its employees, and assigns (collectively “The Company”) do not make any guarantee or warranty about what is advertised above. Information provided by this website is for research purposes only and should not be considered as personalized financial advice. The Company is not affiliated with, nor does it receive compensation from, any specific security. The Company is not registered or licensed by any governing body in any jurisdiction to give investing advice or provide investment recommendation. Any investments recommended here should be taken into consideration only after consulting with your investment advisor and after reviewing the prospectus or financial statements of the company.

Copyright © 2025 moneyrisetoday.com | All Rights Reserved

Money Rise Today – Investing and Stock News
  • Economy
  • Editor’s Pick
Money Rise Today – Investing and Stock News
  • Investing
  • Stock