WASHINGTON, Aug. 8 (Xinhua) -- A military strike against Iran' nuclear facilities would probably only delay the country's progress toward nuclear-weapons capability, the Washington Post reported Friday.

    The analysis by the Washington-based Institute for Science and International Security (ISIS) found that Iran's uranium facilities are too widely dispersed and protected -- and, in some cases, concealed too well -- to be effectively destroyed by warplanes. And any damage to Iran's nuclear program could be quickly repaired.

    "Following an attack, Iran could quickly rebuild its centrifuge program in small, easily hidden facilities focused on making weapons grade uranium for nuclear weapons," principal author David Albright, ISIS president and a former UN weapons inspector, was quoted as saying.

    An Israeli or U.S. attack would also result in broader popular support for the Iranian government and could lead Tehran to sever ties with the International Atomic Energy Agency, according to Albright.