"Pickaxe mountain could be a target for a powerful strike right at the front door. We will destroy that place, tell Iran to get ready. Let them know we are coming and they will not be able to do anything", US President Donald Trump stated during an interview on The Hugh Hewitt Show on 13/7.

President Trump indicated that the US is closely monitoring the facility and has not observed any activity there. He suggested that Tehran's nuclear program faces significant obstacles, as Washington intends to launch strikes whenever any related activity is detected.

US President Donald Trump speaks on Air Force One on 8/7. Photo: AP

"Every time we hear something about Iran's nuclear program, we blow it up. So, they do not like to talk about this. However, we may soon take action against Pickaxe Mountain", Trump added.

Iranian officials have not yet commented on the information.

Trump's threat to strike Pickaxe Mountain comes amid escalating US-Iran tensions, with both sides continuously engaging in tit-for-tat strikes. The US President on 13/7 announced the re-imposition of a maritime blockade on Iran and proposed collecting a "protection fee" equivalent to 20% of the value of goods from ships passing through the Strait of Hormuz.

Pickaxe Mountain, also known as Kuh-e Kolang Gaz La, is located in the Zagros mountains, approximately 1,5 km from the Natanz nuclear facility. When construction began in 2020, Iran described it as a "centrifuge assembly plant". Tehran has not allowed international inspectors to access the site, raising concerns that the facility could be used for secret purposes, such as uranium enrichment.

According to Hill, the Pickaxe Mountain facility is located approximately 600 m beneath a solid granite layer. This depth and geological structure mean that even the most powerful US bunker-buster bombs cannot reach the underground bunkers. Reuters echoed this assessment, citing experts who described the underground bunker system beneath Pickaxe Mountain as "impenetrable" to all bombs currently in the US military arsenal.

The most powerful US bunker-buster bomb currently is the GBU-57 MOP, measuring 6 m long, 0,8 m in diameter, and weighing nearly 14 tons. It is also the heaviest non-nuclear bomb and the second largest in the US arsenal. The US Air Force once stated that the GBU-57 can penetrate up to 60 m of material before detonating, without specifying the type of material. Analysts at the UK-based defense magazine IHS Janes believe the GBU-57 can penetrate 60 m of earth or 18 m of concrete. Israel once asserted that the GBU-57 is the only weapon capable of penetrating the Fordow "nuclear fortress", a facility believed to be located 80-90 m underground.

Vehicles at the western tunnel entrance of the Pickaxe Mountain facility in a satellite image taken on 21/6. Photo: AP

Contrary to President Trump's statements, the US-based Institute for Science and International Security (ISIS) reported on 2/7 that Iran is conducting construction and reinforcement work at the entrance of Pickaxe Mountain. This assessment was based on the appearance of vehicles in satellite images of the facility taken in June.

By Pham Giang (According to Reuters, Al-Monitor, Hill)