Trump warns US will attack Iran’s Pickaxe Mountain ‘very soon’ amid reports centrifuges have been moved there | Today’s news
US President Donald Trump has again threatened to strike Iran’s Pickaxe Mountain facility, saying the United States will target the underground site “very soon” as Washington continues its military campaign against Tehran.
Speaking to reporters during a meeting with Lebanese President Joseph Aoun in the Oval Office on July 21, Trump said the US was preparing a major strike on a mountain complex located near Iran’s Natanz uranium enrichment facility.
“We’re going to hit that area very soon and very hard,” Trump said.
He added that he is speaking openly about the planned operation only because he believes that Iran will not be able to counter it.
“Normally I wouldn’t say that. If I thought there was something they could do about it, I never would have said that.”
Trump targets enriched uranium
Trump claimed that the real problem was not Iran’s centrifuges, but its stockpile of highly enriched uranium.
“It doesn’t mean anything if they don’t have the material. You’re talking about centrifuges. It doesn’t mean anything if they don’t have the material. They don’t have it. We’re driven by the material. That’s where the action is.”
Iran is believed to have produced nearly 1,000 pounds of uranium enriched to 60% purity—nearly weapons grade. Reports suggest the material is stored at or near the Pickaxe Mountain complex, making it a focal point of stalled US-Iran talks over Tehran’s nuclear program.
Trump repeats previous warning
Trump’s latest comments echo remarks he made during a July 13 interview on The Hugh Hewitt Show, where he publicly threatened the site for the first time.
“We’re about to take out Pickaxe Mountain. Tell the Iranians to be ready.”
He also claimed that Washington is closely monitoring activity at the facility.
“We’re keeping a close eye on Pickaxe Mountain. We don’t see any activity there. They’re not doing well with their nuclear situation. We blow it up every time we hear about it… But we’ll probably give the pickaxe a chance relatively soon.”
Why Pickaxe Mountain is important
Pickaxe Mountain lies about 220 kilometers (140 mi) south of Tehran and about 2 kilometers from the Natanz nuclear complex, one of Iran’s main uranium enrichment sites.
Construction of the underground facility reportedly began in 2020 after an explosion damaged parts of the Natanz complex. Iranian officials later confirmed that they were building a larger and more advanced underground facility to operate centrifuges inside the mountain.
Satellite images analyzed by the Institute for Science and International Security (ISIS), a US non-proliferation think tank, indicate that the site contains two deeply buried tunnel complexes estimated to be at least 100 meters underground, protected by reinforced entrances and an extensive security perimeter.
Read also | Burnham approves the use of British bases for some US attacks on Iran
Experts say the device is difficult to destroy
Military and nuclear experts believe the underground complex is among Iran’s most heavily fortified nuclear facilities and could be beyond the reach of even the United States’ most powerful bunker busting bombs.
The ISIS think tank assessed that while the facility is still under construction and not yet operational, it could eventually be used to assemble centrifuges if Iran rebuilds its nuclear infrastructure.
The organization also suggested that sabotage or ground operations could prove more effective than conventional aerial bombardment, although some vulnerability could still be exploited through specialized deep-penetrating weapons.
Nuclear tensions remain high
Trump’s latest threat comes as tensions between Washington and Tehran remain elevated after months of military exchanges and failed diplomatic efforts over Iran’s nuclear program.
The fate of Iran’s stockpile of highly enriched uranium remains one of the central points of contention in the talks, with US officials insisting the material poses the greatest proliferation risk.
Read also | Trump Says US ‘Not Interested’ in Talks with Iran
