I stood once on a ridge line not far from such places, watching dust settle after an airstrike that everyone hoped would end the matter. It rarely does. The granite beneath Pickaxe Mountain, known locally as Kuh-e Kolang, has become the latest marker in that stubborn pattern.
Israeli intelligence has assessed that Iran moved thousands of uranium-enrichment centrifuges into deep tunnels there last autumn. The relocation followed American and Israeli strikes in June 2025, part of a short but intense war that hit Iran's three main nuclear facilities. According to the Wall Street Journal, the centrifuges were shifted after those attacks on Natanz and associated sites.
The mountain itself is no improvised shelter. Excavation began in 2020 after an explosion damaged an above-ground building. The complex lies roughly one and a half to two kilometres south of the Natanz nuclear area, bored into hard granite that promises protection against most conventional munitions. Iran declared in 2021 that it would carry out nuclear-related work at the site. Yet the International Atomic Energy Agency has never been allowed inside.
Activity at Pickaxe Mountain has continued for more than 15 months, say those familiar with the assessments. Both American and Israeli officials regard it as a potential foundation for any future attempt to rebuild Iran's nuclear programme. The Jerusalem Post has described the fortified underground complex near Natanz as a top concern for Israel, especially as threats from Washington sharpen.
President Donald Trump has left little doubt about American thinking. On 13 July he told listeners on the Hugh Hewitt radio show:
We’re going to take out Pickaxe Mountain. Tell the Iranians to be ready.Days later, speaking to reporters around 21 July, he added:
We’ll be hitting that area pretty soon and very heavily.
The words carry the bluntness of a man who has watched previous rounds of diplomacy fail to curb Iran's ambitions. For years the regime has dispersed its most sensitive work underground, shielded it behind layers of denial, and waited for the attention of the West to drift elsewhere. Each time sanctions eased or talks resumed, the centrifuges kept spinning in the shadows.
