WASHINGTON (AFP/News Desk) – A heavily fortified underground site in Iran has come back into focus after President Donald Trump named it as a possible next target. He said the United States still has “one or two” sites in Iran to deal with, and he specifically named Pickaxe Mountain.
Trump’s remarks
Speaking to reporters in Florida over the weekend, Trump said the US had destroyed much of Iran’s nuclear and military capabilities. He said a small number of targets remain, and that Washington could handle them in about ten minutes. Pickaxe Mountain, he said, is one that would have to be dealt with, and he added that the US has a plan it could carry out very quickly.
Trump also said negotiations with Tehran are “going fine,” though he called Iran “not very reliable.” He said he was in no great hurry to resume strikes. He confirmed that he spoke with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, saying Iran was among the topics.
Where the site is
Pickaxe Mountain is known in Iran as Kuh-e Kolang Gaz La. It lies in Isfahan province, about 220 km south of Tehran and roughly 2 km south of the Natanz nuclear complex. Western analysts use the English name for a large network of tunnels built into the mountain.
Its key feature is its depth and hard granite rock. Experts estimate that parts of the facility may lie 80 to 100 metres underground. Neither that depth nor the internal layout has been independently verified.
The site was not struck during the US attacks on Fordow, Natanz and Isfahan in June 2025. It has also largely escaped the current war, which the US and Israel launched on Iran on February 28. Western intelligence has flagged it as a likely place for storing nuclear material.
Can the US bomb it?
Questions are growing over whether America’s most powerful conventional bunker-buster, the 13,600 kg GBU-57, could destroy installations buried so deep. Analysts note that the weapon’s effectiveness against targets at this depth is uncertain, which is part of why the site has remained a subject of debate.
Timing and pressure
Trump has threatened Pickaxe Mountain before, in mid-July and again in early September, each time linking a strike to a failed deal or to signs of new activity at the site. Reports say Netanyahu is pressing Washington to resume strikes after the US midterm elections on November 3, while Trump has favoured giving diplomacy more time.
A separate and unverified claim by commentator Tucker Carlson says Trump is weighing a nuclear strike on the site and could decide by November 7. Trump has not specified what weapons he would use, and the White House has not confirmed any such plan.
Iran’s response
Iran denies carrying out any nuclear activity at the Pickaxe Mountain complex. Its Supreme Leader has warned the United States and Israel against further attacks. Tehran has also said the next move is up to Washington, and has warned that any new strikes would bring a response with no geographic limits.