Truce Iran-Israel: Netanyahu proclaims a “historic victory”

A fragile truce between Iran and Israel is in force on Wednesday, Israeli Prime Minister Benyamin Netanyahu, welcoming a “historic victory” against Tehran and his nuclear program, even if a confidential American document published by media sowed doubt on the effectiveness of the United States strikes against Iranian atomic facilities.

Iran, of which three key nuclear sites were bombed on Sunday by the United States, also shouted “victory” and reaffirmed its “legitimate rights” to continue its atomic program for civil use, claiming to be ready to resume dialogue with Washington.

“We have obtained a historic victory,” said Benyamin Netanyahu addressed to the nation, a few hours after the implementation of the ceasefire, imposed by US President Donald Trump. “We destroyed the Iranian nuclear project. And if someone in Iran tries to (the) rebuild, we will act with the same determination, with the same intensity, to make any attempt fail, “he promised, repeating that” Iran will never have the atomic weapon “.

But according to a confidential preliminary report of the American intelligence, the content of which has been described by sources close to the file to media, the bombings by the United States of the facilities of Fordo, Natanz and Ispahan on the night of Saturday to Sunday would not have completely eliminated centrifuge or Iranian uranium stocks.

The strikes would rather have sealed the entries of certain facilities without destroying underground buildings, delaying the Iranian nuclear program for only a few months, without destroying it completely, according to this information.

The spokesperson for the White House Karoline Leavitt confirmed the authenticity of the report but declared that he was “completely wrong and classified top secret but disclosed”. This leak “is an obvious attempt to lower President Trump and discredit the courageous pilots who have perfectly executed their mission to destroy the Iranian nuclear program,” she wrote on X.

On his Truth Social network, Donald Trump maintained Tuesday evening that Iranian nuclear sites are “completely destroyed”. After the strikes, the Minister of Defense Pete Hegseth said they had “devastated the Iranian nuclear program”.

The American chief of staff, General Dan Caine, was more prudent by declaring that they had caused “extremely serious damage and destruction” to the referred to facilities.

The International Atomic Energy Agency (AIEA) has considered it impossible at this stage to assess the damage inflicted on Iranian sites, from which it has requested access. Experts believe that Iran may have evacuated nuclear equipment from affected sites and Tehran has always affirmed to have enriched uranium stocks.

The IAEA has said that it has so far detected any index of a “systematic program” to manufacture an atomic bomb in the country. The Iranian government announced on Tuesday that it “took the necessary measures” to ensure the continuation of its nuclear program, which it ensures that it is strictly civil.

An Ayatollah Ali Khamenei advisor, the Iranian Supreme Guide, said that his country still had enriched uranium stocks and that “the part is not over”.

In Israel, the army raised the restrictions imposed on its population on Tuesday evening during the conflict, but warned, by the voice of the chief of staff, that “the campaign against Iran was not finished” and that a “new chapter” opened.

Lieutenant-General Eyal Zamir also said that his army was going to be back on the Gaza Strip, where she has been fighting for Palestinian Hamas since October 2023. Tehran boasted on his side for having forced his Israeli sworn enemy to “unilaterally cease” war.

Its president Massoud Pezeshkian announced in the evening “the end of the war (…) imposed” by Israel and undertook to respect the ceasefire provided that his opponent does the same.

Israel had attacked Iran by the air on June 13, once again accusing Tehran of wanting to acquire the atomic weapon. The Islamic Republic, which has always defended its right to civilian nuclear, retaliated for 12 days by multiplying the missile and drone shots in Israel.