Congress to Establish Task Force to Monitor Iran's Nuclear Program

US Capitol Building (AFP)
US Capitol Building (AFP)
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Congress to Establish Task Force to Monitor Iran's Nuclear Program

US Capitol Building (AFP)
US Capitol Building (AFP)

The US Congress approved the inclusion of provisions from the Iran Nuclear Weapons Capability Monitoring Act of 2022, with bipartisan support to establish a State Department-led joint task force to monitor and regularly provide reports to Congress regarding Iran's nuclear weapons and missile capabilities, in the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA).

The lawmakers approved the bill noting that the task force shall submit a detailed report to the appropriate congressional committees every four months, including accurate information on the uranium enrichment program, the storage of nuclear materials, armament, and the missile program, that would pose a threat to US targets.

The bill has been included in next year's defense budget to be approved by Congress this week, ensuring decisive approval.

Chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee Bob Menendez welcomed the law's inclusion in the defense budget, saying the inclusion of the legislation to better track Iran's nuclear efforts in the NDAA is an important step forward as the US continues to look for creative ways to address Iran's illicit nuclear program fully.

The senator stressed the importance of the project, noting that its approval would contribute to boosting efforts to prevent Tehran from becoming a nuclear weapons state and potentially igniting a nuclear arms race in the most dangerous tinderbox in the world.

For his part, Republican Senator Lindsey Graham called on the US government to stay "focused on monitoring Iranian nuclear ambitions."

Graham said the extra monitoring would make it harder for Iran to break out in a nuclear fashion.

Project details

The draft requires the Secretary of State to form a task force that includes officials from the State Department, Intelligence, and the Ministry of Energy, specialized in monitoring Iran's nuclear program, provided that it submits an immediate report to Congress within 72 hours of the receipt of intelligence on the development in the nuclear weapons capabilities.

The bill requires the administration to submit an annual "comprehensive plan for engaging with allies and regional partners" in all relevant multilateral fora to address such nuclear weapons and missile activities.

It must also include a description of a coordinated whole-of-government approach to use political, economic, and security-related tools to address such activities.

The unclassified portion of the report required shall be made available to the public on an internet website of the Department of State.

The bill clearly stated that Congress should push for any necessary steps to ensure that the Iranian Republic does not develop a nuclear weapons capability, referring to the military option that the administration did not rule out in its recent statements.

The lawmakers' request is not limited to Iran only but extends to its regional agents and destabilizing activities to provide Congress with a clear picture of Iran's malign activities at the domestic and international levels.

It also includes drone development activities and details of the United States' efforts to counter Iran's political and military influence.



Death Toll from Catastrophic Flooding in Texas over the July Fourth Weekend Surpasses 100

 A portion of Highway 1340 is covered by the Guadalupe River in the aftermath of deadly flooding in Kerr County, Texas, US, July 7, 2025. (Reuters)
A portion of Highway 1340 is covered by the Guadalupe River in the aftermath of deadly flooding in Kerr County, Texas, US, July 7, 2025. (Reuters)
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Death Toll from Catastrophic Flooding in Texas over the July Fourth Weekend Surpasses 100

 A portion of Highway 1340 is covered by the Guadalupe River in the aftermath of deadly flooding in Kerr County, Texas, US, July 7, 2025. (Reuters)
A portion of Highway 1340 is covered by the Guadalupe River in the aftermath of deadly flooding in Kerr County, Texas, US, July 7, 2025. (Reuters)

The death toll from catastrophic flooding in Texas over the July Fourth weekend surpassed 100 on Monday as search-and-rescue teams continued to wade into swollen rivers and use heavy equipment to untangle trees as part of the massive search for missing people.

Authorities overseeing the search for flood victims said they will wait to address questions about weather warnings and why some summer camps did not evacuate ahead of the flooding that killed at least 104.

The officials spoke only hours after the operators of Camp Mystic, a century-old all-girls Christian summer camp in the Texas Hill Country, announced that they lost 27 campers and counselors to the floodwaters. Kerr County officials said 10 campers and one counselor were still unaccounted for Monday.

Searchers have found the bodies of 84 people, including 28 children, in the county home to Camp Mystic and several other summer camps, officials said.

With additional rain on the way, more flooding still threatened saturated parts of central Texas. Authorities said the death toll was sure to rise.

The raging flash floods, among the nation’s worst in decades, slammed into camps and homes along the edge of the Guadalupe River before daybreak Friday, pulling sleeping people out of their cabins, tents and trailers and dragging them for miles past floating tree trunks and cars. Some survivors were found clinging to trees.

Piles of twisted trees sprinkled with mattresses, refrigerators and coolers littered the riverbanks Monday. The debris included reminders of what drew so many to the campgrounds and cabins in the Hill Country — a volleyball, canoes and a family portrait.

Nineteen deaths were reported in Travis, Burnet, Kendall, Tom Green and Williamson counties, local officials said.

Among those confirmed dead were 8-year-old sisters from Dallas who were at Camp Mystic and a former soccer coach and his wife who were staying at a riverfront home. Their daughters were still missing.

Calls for finding why warnings weren't heard

Authorities vowed that one of the next steps would be investigating whether enough warnings were issued and why some camps did not evacuate or move to higher ground in a place long vulnerable to flooding that some local residents refer to as “flash flood alley.”

That will include a review of how weather warnings were sent out and received. One of the challenges is that many camps and cabins are in places with poor cellphone service, Kerrville City Manager Dalton Rice said.

“We definitely want to dive in and look at all those things,” he said. “We’re looking forward to doing that once we can get the search and rescue complete.”

Some camps were aware of the dangers and monitoring the weather. At least one moved several hundred campers to higher ground before the floods.

Sen. Ted Cruz, a Texas Republican, said recent government spending cuts to the Federal Emergency Management Agency and the National Weather Service did not delay any warnings.

“There’s a time to have political fights, there’s a time to disagree. This is not that time,” Cruz said. “There will be a time to find out what could been done differently. My hope is in time we learn some lessons to implement the next time there is a flood.”

The weather service first advised of potential flooding on Thursday and then sent out a series of flash flood warnings in the early hours of Friday before issuing flash flood emergencies — a rare step that alerts the public to imminent danger.

Authorities and elected officials have said they did not expect such an intense downpour, the equivalent of months of rain. Some residents said they never received any warnings.

President Donald Trump, who signed a major disaster declaration for Kerr County and plans to visit the area, said Sunday that he does not plan to rehire any of the federal meteorologists who were fired this year.

“This was a thing that happened in seconds. Nobody expected it,” the president said.

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said local and federal weather services provided sufficient warnings.

“That was an act of God. It’s not the administration’s fault that the flood hit when it did, but there were early and consistent warnings,” Leavitt said.

More than three dozen people were unaccounted for across the state and more could be missing, Gov. Greg Abbott said Sunday.

Search-and-rescue crews at one staging area said Monday that more than 1,000 volunteers had been directed to Kerr County.

Little time to escape floods

Reagan Brown said his parents, in their 80s, managed to escape uphill as water inundated their home in the town of Hunt. When the couple learned that their 92-year-old neighbor was trapped in her attic, they went back and rescued her.

“Then they were able to reach their tool shed up higher ground, and neighbors throughout the early morning began to show up at their tool shed, and they all rode it out together,” Brown said.

Elizabeth Lester, a mother of children who were at Camp Mystic and nearby Camp La Junta during the flood, said her young son had to swim out his cabin window to escape. Her daughter fled up the hillside as floodwaters whipped against her legs.