A fresh assessment by the Pentagon intelligence wing suggests that Iran retains its key military capabilities, challenging recent claims by senior American officials about the extent of damage to Tehranโs forces.
According to a report by NBC News, the findings from the defence intelligence community stand in sharp contrast to statements made by Donald Trump and US Secretary of War Pete Hegseth. Both had earlier suggested that Iranโs military had suffered severe and possibly irreversible losses in recent engagements.
However, the intelligence report indicates that despite these operations, Iranโs armed forces remain a significant regional power. This contradicts claims that the countryโs air force had been destroyed and its navy largely incapacitated.
Amid these developments, Trump announced an extension of the ceasefire involving Iran, citing a request from Pakistani leaders to delay a planned military strike. The decision came just hours before the earlier deadline was set to expire.
Describing Iranโs leadership as โseriously fractured,โ Trump said the maritime blockade of Iranian ports would continue until the US receives a โunified proposalโ from Tehran.
In a post on Truth Social, he stated that the pause in hostilities was granted at the request of Asim Munir and Shehbaz Sharif. He added that the US had been asked to hold off on its planned attack until Iranโs leadership presents a consolidated proposal.
Trump further said he had directed the military to maintain the blockade while remaining fully prepared for further action, noting that the ceasefire would remain in place until discussions conclude.
The announcement drew a sharp response from Tehran. Mahdi Mohammadi, an adviser to Iranโs parliament speaker, rejected the move, saying the โlosing side cannot dictate terms.โ He argued that the extension held no value for Iran and called for a stronger military response against US forces.
In a post on X, Mohammadi said the ceasefire extension was meaningless and warned that maintaining the blockade was equivalent to continued aggression. He also suggested the move could be an attempt to buy time for a surprise strike, urging Iran to take the initiative.
Also read:ย Trump extends ceasefire as second round of talks with Iran hang in limbo