Mystery surrounds fate of Iran's enriched uranium after US strikes

Uncertainty looms over the whereabouts of Iran's highly enriched uranium stockpile following recent US and Israeli strikes on key nuclear facilities, an American newspaper said in its report on Thursday.

Over the years, Iran had built a stockpile of roughly 880 pounds of uranium enriched to 60%, edging close to weapons-grade levels, according to The New York Times.

Intelligence officials had long believed that Tehran would attempt to move this material if an attack became imminent.

While US President Donald Trump claimed that “nothing was taken out of the facility” at Fordo and that moving the stockpile would have been “too dangerous and very heavy and hard to move!” other officials suggest otherwise.

White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said American intelligence saw no indication the uranium was moved before the strike. However, assessments remain contradictory.

International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi stated that evidence pointed to at least partial movement of the material.

“I don't know if they moved all of it,” Grossi stated, “but the evidence points to their moving out a lot of it.”

Intelligence suggests that they could discreetly transport uranium containers, possibly even in the trunks of cars.

The IAEA observed signs of vehicular movement at Isfahan before the strike.

- ‘Vile but not stupid'

US officials confirmed that parts of Natanz were damaged but not destroyed.

Meanwhile, Fordo's centrifuges are unlikely to be operable again soon, and Isfahan's conversion facility, key to transforming uranium into bomb material, was severely damaged.

Still, uncertainty remains over whether Iran retained enough fuel and technical expertise to pursue a nuclear weapon at a hidden site.

European officials believe that Iran likely dispersed some of the material, although the exact locations are unknown.

“The regime may be vile, but they are not stupid,” the New York Times quoted Representative Jim Himes, top Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee, as saying. “This stuff can be relatively easily relocated.”

According to Vice President JD Vance, the US is seeking to open talks with Iran to clarify the stockpile's fate.

However, with conflicting intelligence and damaged oversight infrastructure, officials say the question of how much enriched uranium remains in Iranian hands could take time to answer.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio noted that while Iran's nuclear infrastructure was likely “substantially diminished,” its capacity to recover remains an ongoing concern.

A 12‑day conflict between Israel and Iran erupted on June 13 after Israel launched air strikes on Iranian military, nuclear, and civilian sites, killing at least 606 people and injuring 5,332, according to Iran's Health Ministry.

Tehran launched retaliatory missile and drone strikes on Israel, killing at least 29 people and wounding more than 3,400, according to figures released by the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.

The conflict came to a halt under a US-sponsored ceasefire that took effect on June 24.