White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt on Wednesday called a CNN report based on an intelligence assessment of the U.S. strikes aimed at Iran's nuclear facilities "fake news" and added that whoever leaked info to the network should "go to jail."
CNN cited a Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA) report in claiming an early assessment said the strikes on three of Iran's nuclear facilities last weekend did not destroy the core components of the country's nuclear program and likely only set it back by months.
President Donald Trump, though, accused CNN and The New York Times of joining forces to "demean" the Operation Midnight Hammer strikes on three Iranian nuclear facilities, insisting that the sites were destroyed in last weekend's actions.
After a Capitol Hill meeting to discuss the tax-cut and spending megabill, Leavitt was asked if the administration will release the DIA report.
"What I can tell you about what's been taking place is that CNN's story was completely fake news and they took bits and pieces from a leaked top secret intelligence report, and by the way, I understand the FBI is investigating who was the source of that leak because it's an illegal leak to CNN," Leavitt said.
"And this is the same fake news CNN reporter who wrote the story alleging that the Hunter Biden laptop was Russian disinformation, which we know is one of the greatest political hoaxes this country and the American public have ever seen."
Leavitt continued that the CNN report "does not change the facts" of the missile strikes on the Fordo, Natanz, and Esfahan uranium enrichment facilities.
"There was a total and complete obliteration of Iran's nuclear facilities," she said, "and because of the president's strike, because of the precision of our United States military in this perfectly executed mission, Iran no longer has the capability to produce a nuclear weapon as imminently as they did prior to the strike.
"The American people in the world should be grateful for that, and it's disgusting that CNN and the New York Times are disparaging not just the President, but our brave men and women who helped conduct this highly successful operation."
As Leavitt turned and waked away, a reporter asked, "What kind of consequence could the leaker face?"
"They should go to jail," Leavitt said.
The Defense Intelligence Agency is the Pentagon's intelligence arm. CNN, citing a source, said the DIA report was based on a battle damage assessment conducted by U.S. Central Command after the U.S. strikes.
CNN added that the DIA analysis of the damage and impact of the strikes was ongoing and could change as more intelligence becomes available.
Charlie McCarthy ✉
Charlie McCarthy, a writer/editor at Newsmax, has nearly 40 years of experience covering news, sports, and politics.
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