New satellite imagery obtained and analyzed by CNN shows signs that Iran may be attempting to rebuild its nuclear facilities, raising questions over whether Tehran violated the memorandum of understanding it signed with the United States on June 17. The images, provided to CNN by Vantor and analyzed together with the Institute for Science and International Security, show fresh activity at several nuclear and missile sites across Iran during late June and early July, activity that in some cases took place while the memorandum was formally in effect.
Under the terms of the memorandum, Iran committed to maintaining the status quo in its nuclear program and refraining from further weapons development. At Taleghan 2, a facility within the Parchin military complex believed by experts to house explosive material used in nuclear weapons, imagery taken on June 22 and July 7 shows what appears to be repair and reconstruction work on impact holes left by bunker-busting bombs during the earlier US-Israeli bombing campaign. At Pickaxe Mountain, a suspected underground nuclear site, imagery from June 21 shows vehicles moving in and out of tunnel entrances.
CNN said it approached both the Iranian and American governments for comment on the findings. A Pentagon official declined to discuss the matter, telling the network the department would not comment on battlefield conditions or intelligence matters for reasons of operational security.
The imagery became available to CNN during a brief window in which the US government eased a weeks-long restriction that had barred commercial satellite companies from distributing images of the region. Those restrictions have been largely reinstated since American military operations against Iran resumed this week.
The report lands amid a broader unraveling of the ceasefire framework established last month. President Trump has said the truce is over following Iranian attacks on commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz and a fresh round of US strikes in response. Iran's chief negotiator, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, has said Tehran is prepared for "all-out defense" should Washington be seen as breaching the memorandum, even as mediators from Qatar and Oman continue working to salvage the diplomatic track. Axios has reported that a new round of US-Iran talks is expected as soon as next week, possibly in Switzerland.
