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Iran likely filled in tunnels at some of its nuclear facilities ahead of the recent US strikes, according to a Washington-based nuclear nonproliferation group.
The Institute for Science and International Security said satellite images taken by Airbus on Friday showed trucks dumping soil into tunnels at Iran’s nuclear site in Isfahan, just days before the American attack early Sunday.
The group believes the US strikes likely targeted the tunnel entrances, according to an AP report run by the UNB news agency.
“At least three of the four tunnel entrances are collapsed,” it said. “The status of the fourth one is unclear.”
Iran is also believed to have filled in tunnels at its underground Fordo enrichment facility prior to the American strikes, which may have been an effort to shield the sites from potential damage.
The group further stated that the US cruise missile strike at the Isfahan site likely destroyed Iran’s uranium conversion facility. That facility processes natural uranium into uranium hexafluoride, a material Iran uses in centrifuges to enrich uranium.
Meanwhile, US President Donald Trump claimed that the strikes inflicted significant damage on Iran’s nuclear program.
“The biggest damage took place far below ground level. Bullseye!!!” Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform, describing the impact as “monumental damage.”
However, US defence officials have said an assessment is still underway to determine the full extent of the damage.
Iran has yet to disclose details of the damage caused by the strikes. Tehran has also not provided specific information about the strikes it has faced from Israel amid the ongoing conflict between the two countries.