Pickax Mountain near the Natanz nuclear facility, Iran – November 14, 2025: 12:12 – Vantor satellite image shows tunneling activities and a large loot pile near the Natanz nuclear complex on Pickax Mountain. Please use: Satellite image (c) 2026 Vantor.
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President Donald Trump has threatened to bomb Iran’s underground nuclear facility Pickaxe Mountain, increasing tensions between the US and Iran.
The president’s comments have put renewed focus on one of Iran’s most secure and protected facilities.
It comes as US Central Command has bombed Iranian targets for 11 consecutive nights, including military operations centers, drone storage facilities and military logistics infrastructure, as it seeks to weaken the country’s ability to control commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz.
The US and Iran signed an interim memorandum of understanding on June 17 that halted military operations, called for the reopening of Hormuz and established a 60-day period to negotiate a permanent agreement, including terms covering Iran’s nuclear program. But the document left the future management of the Strait of Hormuz unresolved.
Here’s what we know about the latest point of tension between the US and Iran.
What has Trump said about Pickaxe Mountain?
Speaking from Washington on Tuesday, the president said US forces would soon target Pickaxe Mountain – a key underground site next to an Iranian nuclear facility.
Trump told reporters at the White House, “We will probably be hitting that area very soon, and there’s nothing they can do. Normally I wouldn’t say that; I would never say that if I thought they could do something about it, but we will be hitting that area very soon, and very heavily.”
The debate has intensified since US President Donald Trump announced that Pickaxe Mountain, which reportedly houses an underground Iranian nuclear facility, would be targeted.
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Trump also issued similar threats On the Hugh Hewitt show at the beginning of the month: “We’re watching (Pickaxe Mountain) closely. We don’t see any activity there. They’re not doing well with their nuclear situation. Every time we hear about it, we blow it up. So they don’t like to talk about it. But we’ll probably give Pickaxe a chance relatively soon.”
Iran’s Khatam al-Anbia military command said in translated comments reported by state broadcaster IRIB that such an attack would be considered an “explosion of war in the region.” He also threatened attacks on “all interests, allies, and supporters of the United States.”
What to know about a nuclear facility?
Located south of Iran’s Natanz enrichment plant, construction of Pickaxe Mountain, or Kuh-e Kolang Ghaz La as it is known in Iran, began in 2020. At the time, Iran said the underground facility would replace the destroyed centrifuge plant at Natanz, which would have seen 6,000 nuclear centrifuges According to the Institute for Science and International Security (ISIS), it is assembled annually.
According to ISIS, the mountain has an elevation of 1,608 meters above sea level, while the feature is estimated to be 100 meters deep beneath the mountain.
Construction on Pickaxe Mountain has intensified since the US attacked three Iranian nuclear sites, including Natanz, Fordow and Isfahan, in June 2025, according to satellite image analysis. Center for Strategic and International Studies.
CSIS determined that Iran had built security walls around the entire site with tunnels to the west, east, and south.
“It is unclear when Pickaxe Mountain may have become operational, based only on assessments of satellite imagery,” ISIS researchers said in a July 14 note. “It is also unclear whether Iran still plans to establish a large-scale assembly facility, given the destruction of Iran’s centrifuge program, including Iran’s ability to make the centrifuge components needed for an assembly plant.”
— CNBC’s Lim Hui Jie and Emma Graham helped contribute to this report.