Conflict · ArchiveTrump Threatens to Bomb Iran's Deeply Buried Pickaxe Mountain Nuclear SiteAired July 22, 2026 at 3:19 AM UTCWritten September 7, 2026 at 9:22 PM UTCRead the write-upThis storyTranscript · LOADING0:00President Trump is escalating the war0:01with Iran, threatening to bomb the most0:03fortified nuclear site in the Middle0:05East, a facility carved deep into a0:06mountain. Trump told reporters Monday he0:09will strike Pickaxe Mountain probably0:10pretty soon and very heavily, but the0:12most powerful conventional bomb in the0:14US arsenal may not be able to reach it.0:16Pickaxe Mountain is a tunnel complex0:18buried at least 100 m under solid rock,0:21about 1 and 1/2 km from the Natanz0:23enrichment plant. The facility was built0:25after a 2020 sabotage attack destroyed0:28much of Natanz above ground. The0:30Institute for Science and International0:31Security says it is not yet operational.0:34But Israeli intelligence assessed that0:36Iran moved thousands of centrifuges to0:37the site. The site sits dead center of0:40Iran in Isfahan province. The US0:42launched its 11th consecutive night of0:44strikes on Iran as Trump made this0:46threat, and the timing raises a critical0:48question. Can US bombs actually destroy0:50a facility built to survive them? The0:52Pentagon's most powerful conventional0:54bunker buster, the GBU-57 Massive0:57Ordnance Penetrator, can punch through0:59about 60 m of reinforced earth. That is1:02roughly 60% of Pickaxe Mountain's depth.1:04The math does not add up. Defense1:06Secretary Pete Hegseth told Congress the1:08US can reach any target, but Senator1:11John Kennedy pressed him for straight1:12answers on whether the military can1:14actually destroy the site. Kennedy's1:16demand reflects growing unease on1:18Capitol Hill as the administration1:20expands a war already costing billions.1:22Iran has warned that any strike on its1:24nuclear facilities would trigger a1:25powerful assault on US interests and1:28allies. National Security analyst Aaron1:30McLain notes that even a symbolic strike1:32risks sparking wider nuclear escalation1:34in the region. The human and financial1:36toll is mounting fast. The war has cost1:3937 and 1/2 billion dollars so far. Now1:42the Pentagon wants 67 billion more. 181:45US service members have been killed and1:46more than 440 wounded in the Iran1:48conflict. The question now, can1:51diplomacy catch up before the1:52administration strikes a target no1:54conventional bomb can reach? And what1:56happens if it tries anyway?Explore with HeyDexThe shortThe short ↗