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Trump Threatens Iran’s Deep Underground Pickaxe Mountain Nuclear Site
Pickaxe Mountain is a deep underground facility in Iran near the Natanz nuclear site.
Workers began digging it in 2020 after explosions damaged a facility above ground.
Iran says the tunnels are meant for technical work.
Western and Israeli intelligence agencies worry that Iran could hide nuclear equipment or materials there.
The site is buried more than 300 feet beneath solid granite.
It has not been hit in earlier attacks on Iranian nuclear facilities.
Experts disagree about whether even very large bombs could destroy the tunnels.
Trump has threatened attacks, while Iranian officials say an attack would bring strong retaliation.
Pickaxe Mountain, also called Kūh-e Kolang, lies about 1.5 kilometers south of Iran’s Natanz complex.
Iran began excavating the granite site in late 2020 after sabotage explosions at Natanz’s centrifuge assembly plant.
The facility is more than 300 feet underground and was designed to withstand sabotage and bombardment.
Iran says the tunnels are for legitimate technical work, while Western and Israeli agencies suspect they could support hidden nuclear activities.
Donald Trump warned that the United States knows who is moving around the site and could strike if events deteriorate.
- Who
- Donald Trump, Iran, and Western and Israeli intelligence agencies are central to the dispute.
- What
- Trump threatened possible action against Pickaxe Mountain, an underground Iranian facility suspected by some agencies of supporting concealed nuclear work.
- Where
- Pickaxe Mountain is about 1.5 kilometers south of the Natanz uranium enrichment complex in Isfahan province, Iran.
- When
- Excavation began in late 2020; Trump made the quoted warning on September 4. The article also refers to strikes in mid-2025 and earlier periods in 2026.
- Why
- The site is attracting attention because it is heavily fortified and deep underground, and because officials suspect Iran may have moved sensitive centrifuge equipment or stockpiles there.
Iranian Position
Western and Israeli Concerns
Purpose of the facility
Iranian Position
Iran says Pickaxe Mountain is intended solely for legitimate technical work.
Western and Israeli Concerns
Western and Israeli intelligence agencies suspect the tunnels could store enriched uranium or support covert enrichment beyond inspectors’ view.
Effect of a possible attack
Iranian Position
Iranian defense officials warn that an attack would trigger heavy retaliation and describe the complex as highly fortified.
Western and Israeli Concerns
Defense analysts debate whether bunker-busting weapons can collapse the tunnels, while experts say attacks on entrances, ventilation, or power could still disable the site.
Recent activity
Iranian Position
Iran has not publicly accepted the intelligence claims described in the article.
Western and Israeli Concerns
Allied regional intelligence assessments suggest Iran may have moved sensitive centrifuge equipment or stockpiles into the tunnels to protect them from military pressure.
Key facts
- Local name
- Kūh-e Kolang
- Location
- Approximately 1.5 kilometers south of the Natanz complex, in Iran’s Isfahan province
- Excavation
- Began in late 2020
- Depth
- More than 300 feet beneath solid granite
- Previous attacks
- The site has not been struck by the United States or allied forces, according to the article
- Possible defenses
- Strikes could target tunnel entrances, ventilation systems, or electrical infrastructure even if underground halls withstand a direct blast
- Largest weapon mentioned
- The 30,000-pound GBU-57 Massive Ordnance Penetrator
Quotes
Donald Trump
United States president who issued the warning about activity at Pickaxe Mountain
“We're leading in space. We know everybody that's moving at Pickaxe, we know everybody that's moving everywhere, all over Iran, and if anything goes bad, we hit them. We hit them hard”
businesstoday.in
Sources
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