Few thought airstrikes could ‘obliterate’ Iran's nuclear program. Then Trump said they did.

WASHINGTON — A highly politicized debate is unfolding over the impact of June 21 U.S. airstrikes against Iran’s nuclear facilities, raising questions over the attack’s goal and projected impact. President Donald Trump quickly claimed total victory in the strikes’ wake, claiming that Iran’s “key nuclear enrichment facilities have been completely and totally obliterated.” Subsequent scrutiny of that claim amid early assessments from intelligence agencies has led Trump and his allies to double down on and even expand on his declarations of success. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth claimed to CNN that the strikes “obliterated Iran’s ability to create nuclear weapons.” Iran itself has acknowledged the impact of the U.S. and Israeli attacks.

But in the years since Washington’s withdrawal from the 2015 nuclear deal with Tehran, experts and analysts have emphasized that airstrikes alone would merely delay Iran’s nuclear ambitions rather than permanently derail them. Rep. Mike Quigley, D-Illinois, reiterated that long-held understanding in a June 26 interview. “The targets are hard targets, deep targets, mobile targets. So it was never meant to eliminate the program,” Quigley told USA TODAY. “It was never meant to do anything but slow the program.”