A new US intelligence assessment, reported by Jewish Breaking News, warns that Iran's Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei is substantially more willing than his father to pursue nuclear weapons. The report also says Iran has moved thousands of centrifuges into the underground Pickaxe Mountain complex, beyond the reach of conventional airstrikes.
A new report, published late Saturday evening by Jewish Breaking News, cites a US intelligence assessment warning that Iran's Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei is substantially more willing than his father to build a nuclear bomb. The report also claims that Iran has moved thousands of centrifuges into the underground Pickaxe Mountain complex, buried deep beside Natanz and potentially beyond the reach of conventional airstrikes. Regime hardliners, the report says, argue that only a nuclear weapon can prevent future Israeli and American attacks.
This development follows a series of reports published by The Zioneer on Friday evening, July 24, at 21:30 Jerusalem. The initial New York Times report, cited by The Zioneer, stated that US intelligence agencies assess Mojtaba Khamenei is more open to nuclear weapons development than his father. Subsequent updates that evening added that the intelligence was collected before he assumed the role of Supreme Leader, that Iran has been hiding nuclear equipment and fortifying the Pickaxe Mountain facility, and that US officials say Khamenei supports an advanced thermonuclear warhead over a simple fission bomb. The thread culminated in a New York Times report that US intelligence assesses Khamenei as more determined than his father to pursue nuclear weapons. The new Jewish Breaking News report adds a specific warning about his willingness to build a bomb and the movement of centrifuges.
As The Zioneer has previously reported, the risk of Iran secretly advancing nuclear weapons has been assessed as higher since the US and Israeli strikes in June 2025, with international inspections no longer in place. Mojtaba Khamenei has also previously expressed hardline opposition to nuclear negotiations, stating that talks contradict ideology and will not prevent attacks on Iran's infrastructure.
The accuracy of the Jewish Breaking News report could not be independently verified by The Zioneer.
5 developments
- DevelopingReport: Debate in Iran's top leadership escalates, each camp seeks to pull Mojtaba Khamenei to its side
- DevelopingKhamenei Jr. tells Fars News: nuclear talks contradict our ideology, won't prevent attack on Iran's infrastructure
- DevelopingNew analysis raises questions over Mojtaba Khamenei's status and who runs Iran
- StrongMojtaba Khamenei's office sets memorial ceremony for father for Tuesday in Tehran, after written threat
Source and signal
- Open-source intake