Zachary Cohen - Senior Reporter
Zachary Cohen
Senior Reporter
Zachary Cohen is a senior reporter for CNN, where he focuses on the national security beat in Washington as a member of the network's Pentagon team.
Latest
US did not use bunker-buster bombs on one of Iran’s nuclear sites, top general tells lawmakers, citing depth of the target
Jun 28, 2025
The US military did not use bunker-buster bombs on one of Iran’s largest nuclear sites last weekend because the site is so deep that the bombs likely would not have been effective, the US’ top general told senators during a briefing on Thursday.
Exclusive: Details emerge of secret diplomatic efforts to restart Iran talks
Jun 26, 2025
The Trump administration has discussed possibly helping Iran access as much as $30 billion to build a civilian-energy-producing nuclear program, sources say.
CIA says it has evidence Iran’s nuclear program was ‘severely damaged’ as assessments of US strikes’ impact continue
Jun 26, 2025
CIA Director John Ratcliffe on Wednesday said in a statement that the agency had obtained “a body of credible evidence [that] indicates Iran’s Nuclear Program has been severely damaged” by recent strikes, underscoring a broad intelligence community effort is ongoing to determine the impact of the US strikes on three of the country’s nuclear sites on Saturday.
Exclusive: Early US intel assessment suggests strikes on Iran did not destroy nuclear sites, sources say
Jun 25, 2025
The US military strikes on three of Iran’s nuclear facilities last weekend did not destroy the core components of the country’s nuclear program and likely only set it back by months, according to an early US intelligence assessment that was described by seven people briefed on it.
Dramatic day of diplomacy culminates in Trump announcing Iran-Israel ceasefire
Jun 24, 2025
In the hours after Iran launched a missile attack on a US base in Qatar, President Donald Trump and a group of his top diplomatic and security officials worked furiously behind-the-scenes to try to broker a peace deal to end the conflict between Iran and Israel.
Early assessments raise questions over whether US destroyed bulk of enriched Iranian nuclear material
Jun 22, 2025
President Donald Trump declared that Iran’s nuclear enrichment facilities were “completely and totally obliterated” following this weekend’s air strikes, but the US appears to have held back its most powerful bombs against one of the three facilities included in the operation, raising questions about whether it finished the job.
Hegseth and Caine play dueling roles as key architects of Iran strike
Jun 22, 2025
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Dan Caine took contrasting approaches to advising President Trump on whether to bomb Iran.
US moves B-2 bombers as Trump weighs Iran options
Jun 21, 2025
Multiple US B-2 bombers appear to have taken off from Whiteman Air Force Base in Missouri on Friday night and are heading west, according to flight tracking data CNN has reviewed, as President Donald Trump weighs his military options over a potential airstrike in Iran.
Trump focused on avoiding wider conflict as he nears decision on US strikes in Iran, sources say
Jun 18, 2025
Trump is weighing whether to join Israel’s strikes on Iran — including using bunker-busting bombs to target nuclear facilities deep underground.
Israel says Iran was racing toward a nuclear weapon. US intel says it was years away
Jun 17, 2025
When Israel launched its series of strikes against Iran last week, it also issued a number of dire warnings about the country’s nuclear program, suggesting Iran was fast approaching a point of no return in its quest to obtain nuclear weapons and that the strikes were necessary to preempt that outcome.
Hegseth defends military involvement in LA protests as defense secretary faces questions over costs and authority
Jun 10, 2025
Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth on Tuesday strongly defended the Trump administration’s military response to protests in Los Angeles, his first appearance in a series of congressional hearings over the next week that are likely to be a major test of his leadership following what has widely been viewed as a rocky first few months on the job.
Army preparing for largest military parade on the capital’s streets in decades, featuring 7 million pounds of hardware
Jun 6, 2025
Millions of pounds of military hardware are expected to roll down the US capital’s streets in less than two weeks, fulfilling a dream of President Donald Trump but also sparking concerns about how the roads of Washington, DC, will fare under the literal weight of heavy tanks and fighting vehicles.
Bernard Kerik, Trump ally and NYPD commissioner during 9/11, dies at 69
May 30, 2025
Former New York police commissioner Bernard Kerik, who led the department during the September 11 terror attacks in 2001, has died at the age of 69, according to the New York Police Department and a source close to Kerik.
Trump’s ‘Golden Dome’ missile shield could cost hundreds of billions
May 19, 2025
The Pentagon has submitted small, medium and large options to the White House for developing ‘Golden Dome,’ President Donald Trump’s vision for a cutting-edge missile shield that can protect the US from long-range strikes that will likely cost hundreds of billions of dollars, according to multiple sources familiar with the plans.
Converting luxury jet gifted to Trump into Air Force One could cost hundreds of millions
May 14, 2025
Converting a luxury jet gifted by Qatar to President Donald Trump into a replacement for Air Force One could potentially cost hundreds of millions of dollars and it could take up two years to install the necessary security equipment, communications, and defensive capabilities for it to be safely used by the commander in chief, current and former officials told CNN.
Upcoming changes at CIA shine a spotlight on the spy agency’s director John Ratcliffe
May 8, 2025
As one of the last federal agencies to face major changes in President Trump’s norm-bending second term, the CIA is bracing for significant cuts and a reorganization that seeks to elevate covert operations by hiring more officers to go in the field and fewer analysts to sit behind computer screens.
About
Zachary Cohen is a senior reporter for CNN, where he focuses on the national security beat in Washington as a member of the network’s Pentagon team.
Cohen began his career with CNN as a video journalist, quickly moving to a video producer role for CNN Digital. He curated, edited and produced content for the CNN homepage, as well as shot, edited and produced original video content targeted directly to the digital audience.
Cohen graduated from the University of Maryland with a degree in Journalism.
