The Jerusalem Post reports: “A recent intelligence assessment has led American officials to believe that a covert team of Iranian scientists is exploring a more rapid, though less advanced, route to developing a nuclear weapon, The New York Times reported Monday.

The intelligence, reportedly collected in the final months of the Biden administration and shared with the Trump administration during the transition, suggests that Iran may be seeking a shortcut to turn its growing stockpile of enriched uranium into a functional weapon within months rather than a year or more, according to the report.

However, US officials maintain that Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, has not made a final decision to pursue a nuclear bomb, The New York Times said.

The intelligence assessment comes as Iran’s regional influence is reportedly at its weakest in years, the report noted…”