Exclusive: US intelligence assesses Iran maintains significant missile launching capability, sources say

[BumRushDaShow]

Source: CNN Politics

PUBLISHED Apr 2, 2026, 7:16 PM ET


Roughly half of Iran’s missile launchers are still intact and thousands of one-way attack drones remain in Iran’s arsenal despite the daily pounding by US and Israeli strikes against military targets over the past five weeks, according to recent US intelligence assessments, three sources familiar with the intel told CNN.

“They are still very much poised to wreak absolute havoc throughout the entire region,” one of the sources said of Iran. The US intelligence assessment total may include launchers that are currently inaccessible, such as those buried underground by strikes but not destroyed.

Thousands of Iranian drones still exist — roughly 50% of the country’s drone capabilities — two of the sources said the intelligence indicated. The intelligence, compiled in recent days, also showed a large percentage of Iran’s coastal defense cruise missiles were intact, the sources said, consistent with the US not focusing its air campaign on coastal military assets though they have been hitting ships. Those missiles serve as a key capability allowing Iran to threaten shipping traffic in the Strait of Hormuz.

The intelligence offers a more nuanced picture of Iran’s continuing capabilities compared to sweeping assessments of military victory offered publicly by President Donald Trump and administration officials.

Read more: https://www.cnn.com/2026/04/02/politics/iran-missiles-us-military-strikes-trump

[Irish_Dem]

1. US military has been focused on the wrong targets.

Trump is a military genius.

[ck4829]

4. Genius with a J

[Irish_Dem]

5. Spelled jackass.

[Javaman]

2. the ketchup industry, big burly tomato men, with tears in their eyes, "Sir Sir! we can keep up with all this winning!"nt

[Yo_Mama_Been_Loggin]

3. Don't tell big Donny

He thinks he's winning.

[LetMyPeopleVote]

6. MaddowBlog-As evidence contradicts the White House's line on Iran, Trump targets free press

The president seems less upset about the developments in Iran than he does about Americans knowing about the developments in Iran.

As evidence contradicts the White House’s line on Iran, Trump targets free press www.ms.now/rachel-maddo...

— Philly Joe (@joehick58.bsky.social) 2026-05-13T19:49:26.039Z

https://www.ms.now/rachel-maddow-show/maddowblog/as-evidence-contradicts-the-white-houses-line-on-iran-trump-targets-free-press

There is reason to believe the president and his team have not just mismanaged an unnecessary war, they have also taken deliberate steps to deceive the public about its progress. MS NOW reported:

Classified U.S. intelligence assessments of Iran’s military capacity revealed a reality at odds with the Trump administration’s public claims that Iran’s missile stockpile has been decimated, showing the regime has regained access to key missile sites and launchers after more than two months of war.

The recent intelligence reports found Iran has restored access to 30 of the 33 missile sites it controls along the Strait of Hormuz, which could be used to target American warships and oil tankers transiting the strategic waterway, a U.S. official with knowledge of the intelligence assessments told MS NOW.

This dovetailed with a related New York Times report that said Iran “still fields about 70 percent of its mobile launchers across the country and has retained roughly 70 percent of its prewar missile stockpile.”....

Two weeks ago, for example, Trump said the Times’ coverage of Iran was “actually seditious, in my opinion.” This week, he kept going, saying via his social media platform that news organizations have committed “virtual TREASON,” adding, “They are aiding and abetting the enemy!”

The argument is tough to follow — the Iranian government is aware of its own military capabilities, whether American news organizations report on its resources or not, so it’s far from clear how Iranian officials are “aided” by the disclosures — though it’s important to emphasize that this is not just an instance of Trump railing against the nation’s free press for the umpteenth time.

On the contrary, the administration is also following through on the rhetoric with meaningful action. The Wall Street Journal reported this week that Trump “privately complained to acting Attorney General Todd Blanche about media leaks in the wake of the Iran war last month, according to administration officials familiar with the matter, prompting an aggressive push at the Justice Department to pursue those investigations.”

trump did not destroy Iran's military and is trying to lie. In addition, it is clear that Iran inflicted significant damage on US bases in the region.