Senator Lindsey Graham on Sunday said the United States should strike Iran again if there is credible evidence that Tehran is rebuilding its nuclear enrichment program or expanding its ballistic missile capabilities following the June strikes.
Speaking to reporters in Tel Aviv, Graham said US and Israeli attacks had destroyed Iran’s nuclear facilities but had not changed the intentions of Iran’s leadership.
“We obliterated the Iranian nuclear facilities. We did not obliterate Iran’s desire to have a nuclear weapon,” he said.
“The regime hasn’t changed at all. They still want to kill all the Jews, consider America the great Satan, and purify Islam,” Graham added.
Graham said there were signs Iran could be attempting to regenerate its capabilities. “Are they regenerating their nuclear capability? Are they building more ballistic missiles that could hurt Europe and Israel? I don’t know, but there’s evidence that, yes, they are,” he said.
He said Washington should act before Iran is able to restore those capabilities.
“If there’s credible evidence that Iran is going back into the enrichment business at other sites, that they’re trying to build more ballistic missiles to terrorize Israel and maybe Europe, that we hit them before they can do that,” Graham said.
In an interview with NBC News on the same day, Graham took a more cautious tone when asked whether additional US strikes against Iran were necessary, saying he would defer to discussions between Israeli officials and President Donald Trump. “I’m going to let the Israelis talk to President Trump about it,” he said.
Graham’s remarks come a day after NBC News reported, citing Israeli officials, that Israel was preparing to brief President Donald Trump on options for possible new military strikes on Iran, amid concerns that Tehran is expanding its ballistic missile program.
The report said Israeli officials believe Iran is rebuilding facilities linked to ballistic missile production and repairing air defenses damaged in June strikes, which they view as more urgent than nuclear enrichment efforts.
Earlier this year, US airstrikes targeted three key Iranian nuclear sites at Fordow, Natanz, and Isfahan, following an Israeli air campaign that began on June 13 against Iranian military and nuclear-related sites.
Iran denies seeking nuclear weapons and has called the attacks illegal.
The United States has demanded Iran renounce domestic uranium enrichment while Tehran maintains its nuclear program is an international right.
