'No coming back for Iranian regime now, but...': Top expert warns of asymmetric attacks in US

There is no coming back for the Iranian regime after the U.S. strikes on its nuclear facilities, former US Treasury official and terror finance expert Jonathan Schanzer said while speaking to news agency ANI on Sunday. But while Iran's military infrastructure has been devastated, he warns that the bigger risk may now come from asymmetric attacks, possibly even on American soil.

"There is no coming back from this for the (Iranian) regime. They've lost their entire air force, they have lost their air defences, they have lost their nuclear facilities. There is not much to operate with right now, other than asymmetric attacks and whatever is left of their missile arsenal," Schanzer said, reacting to the American assault on Iran’s Fordow, Natanz, and Isfahan nuclear sites.

The coordinated US airstrikes, carried out late Saturday, marked a significant escalation in the ongoing Iran-Israel conflict and the first direct American military action in the theatre. US President Donald Trump called it a "spectacular military success", declaring that Iran’s nuclear enrichment capacity had been "completely and totally obliterated."

Trump said, "Iran, the bully of the Middle East, must now make peace. If they do not, future attacks would be far greater and a lot easier. Remember, there are many targets left. Tonight’s was the most difficult of them all by far, and perhaps the most lethal.”

Speaking from the White House, the President added: “Our objective was the destruction of Iran’s nuclear enrichment capacity and a stop to the nuclear threat posed by the world's number one state sponsor of terror.”

While Tehran has not officially confirmed the full extent of the damage, US officials told Reuters that six bunker-buster bombs were dropped on the Fordow facility by B-2 stealth bombers. Trump himself posted on Truth Social: "We have completed our very successful attack on the three nuclear sites in Iran. A full payload of BOMBS was dropped on the primary site, Fordow. Fordow is gone."

Schanzer, however, flagged a different danger that may follow. "I am concerned about asymmetric attacks here in the United States, sleeper cells in particular. Because this (Iran) is the world's number one state sponsor of terrorism, they have the means, they have the will, they've got the capabilities. If they choose to attack the United States, they certainly can do so."

He noted that Iran's options in direct military response appear limited following the loss of its strategic infrastructure but said other forms of retaliation were still on the table. "We'll wait and see whether the Israelis sustain strikes or the United States sustain strikes. But this is a regime that appears defiant, despite the president's assessment that they are effectively a spent force."

Schanzer also weighed in on the possibility of Iran moving to close the Strait of Hormuz — a vital waterway for global oil shipments. "Any attempt to close the Strait of Hormuz right now will be met with probably unbelievable force from the United States. Now that this has started, it's not that difficult to imagine the French or the Brits coming in to clear the lanes… I see the Iranians as being absolutely suicidal if they go down this route,” he said.

"I do get a sense that we could be at a pivotal moment here. It doesn't mean that Iran won't try to attack, but I think asymmetrically is much more likely than through conventional means," Schanzer concluded.

Trump, meanwhile, praised Israel for its cooperation in the mission. “We worked as a team like perhaps no team has ever worked before. We've gone a long way to erasing this horrible threat to Israel. I want to thank the Israeli military for the wonderful job they've done,” he said, referring to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and joint military coordination.