Iran's president dismisses potential Israeli strike on nuclear sites, threatens to build thousands of new facilities

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian has dismissed the prospects of potential Israeli strikes on Iran’s covert nuclear facilities.

"They threaten us that they will hit nuclear facilities... If you (the enemy) strike a hundred of those we will build a thousand other ones... You can hit the buildings and the places but you cannot hit those who build it," Pezeshkian said.

The Iranian president was likely alluding to the institutional knowledge accumulated by Iranian nuclear experts over time. However, with Iran's economy under increasing strain, it remains unclear how he envisions funding the construction of numerous costly nuclear facilities

Pezeshkian's remarks came after U.S. intelligence recently estimated that it was “likely” Israel would carry out “significant strikes on Iranian nuclear sites this year.”

“After Khamenei’s remarks where he cast doubt on negotiations with the U.S., the American government is sending a message to Iran’s regime tonight with two articles in major newspapers disclosing how Israel is readying for a strike on [Iran’s] nuclear program in 2025,” said Jason Brodsky, policy director for the nonprofit organization, United Against Nuclear Iran (UANI).

U.S. intelligence believes a potential Israeli pre-emptive strike would target Iran’s main nuclear sites in Fordow and Natanz. Israel reportedly seeks to take advantage of Iran’s current weakness and its damaged aerial defense systems, which were largely destroyed in a large Israeli aerial strike on Iran in late October of last year.

According to one attack scenario, Israeli fighter jets would strike ballistic missiles on Iran’s nuclear sites without entering Iranian airspace. A second strike option envisions that Israeli fighter jets would fly directly over Iran’s nuclear sites and drop bunker-busting bombs, which the Trump administration recently greenlighted to export to Israel.

U.S. President Donald Trump has repeatedly emphasized that he will not permit the Iranian regime to acquire a nuclear weapon. Trump has also stressed that he prefers a diplomatic solution and a new deal that prevents Iran from crossing the nuclear threshold. Earlier this month, the president denied that Israel and the United States were planning a strike on Iran’s nuclear facilities.

“I want Iran to be a great and successful Country, but one that cannot have a Nuclear Weapon. Reports that the United States, working in conjunction with Israel, is going to blow Iran into smithereens, ARE GREATLY EXAGGERATED,” Trump stated.

"Everyone thinks Israel, with our help or our approval, will go in and bomb the hell out of them. I would prefer that not to happen," Trump recently said during an interview with Fox News.

The Iranian regime and its terror proxies, Hezbollah in Lebanon, Hamas in Gaza and the Houthis in Yemen, openly call for Israel’s destruction.

However, during the 16 months of war, Israel delivered severe blows to its regional enemies.

In November, Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz assessed that Iran was "more vulnerable than ever to attacks on its nuclear facilities," and noted that Israel had "an opportunity to achieve the most important goal: to thwart and eliminate the existential threat to the State of Israel."