# Trump says the US will strike Iran's 'Pickaxe Mountain' underground nuclear facility > US President Donald Trump declared on July 13 that US forces would take out 'Pickaxe Mountain,' a heavily fortified underground nuclear complex near Iran's Natanz facility, saying a strike would come 'relatively soon'; the threat came during the third consecutive night of US strikes on Iran, as satellite imagery showed recent construction at the site and Iran's army struck a US naval vessel with cruise missiles **Meta:** type: event · date: 2026-07-13 · heads: How Wars Actually End, What They're Not Saying · 18 takes · 7 lenses · 6 regions ## Summary US President Donald Trump threatened on July 13 to destroy "Pickaxe Mountain," a heavily fortified underground nuclear facility near [Iran's Natanz complex](/en/n/iran-nuclear-iaea-access-standoff), saying US forces would take it out "relatively soon" and that it was "on the list." The warning came as the US carried out its third consecutive night of [strikes against Iran](/en/n/iran-us-strikes-jul13). Al-Monitor reported that satellite imagery has detected recent construction at the underground site. Iran's state media reported the Iranian army struck a US naval vessel with cruise missiles on the same day, the first confirmed Iranian counter-strike against US naval assets. ## The split US and Israeli outlets (JNS, Haaretz) report the Pickaxe Mountain threat as a deliberate escalation move, paired with a third night of strikes. Pakistani and Indian papers (The News International, Free Press Journal, Sunday Guardian Live) foreground the nuclear dimension: a threatened strike on an enrichment facility is a qualitative step beyond the conventional targets hit so far. Al-Monitor's satellite-imagery angle is notable for being absent from mainstream wire coverage. Haaretz alone captures Iran's naval counter-strike against a US vessel, which US-centric outlets omit. ## By the numbers - 3, consecutive nights of US strikes on Iran as of July 14 - 1, US naval vessel struck by Iranian cruise missiles, per Iranian state media via Haaretz - 1, underground nuclear complex near Natanz explicitly named as a US target ## Why it matters Striking [Iran's nuclear facilities](/en/n/iran-nuclear-iaea-dispute-june2026) would be a categorical escalation from the conventional strikes already underway. Bunker-busting munitions would be required for a buried site. Iran's naval counter-strikes, if they continue, raise the risk of a direct naval clash in the [Strait of Hormuz](/en/entity/place/strait-of-hormuz), a chokepoint that carries a major share of global oil trade. ## What to watch - Whether US forces carry out a strike on Pickaxe Mountain in the coming days - Iran's response: further naval or missile attacks on US forces, carriers or regional allies - IAEA access to the facility: whether inspectors can verify what is being constructed there - The status of the preliminary Iran-US peace framework after the Hormuz levy announcement ## Regional takes (batched by bias / lens) ### Middle East analysis; satellite imagery angle, first major outlet to report construction activity at the site - **Al-Monitor** (United States / Middle East, en) — Al-Monitor is the first to report satellite imagery showing recent construction at the Pickaxe Mountain underground facility near Natanz. The piece provides the nuclear-facilities context for Trump's threat, framing it as distinct from the conventional strikes already underway. > "Satellite imagery has detected recent construction at the underground facility." Source: https://www.al-monitor.com/originals/2026/07/trump-says-us-strike-irans-pickaxe-mountain-nuclear-site ### South Asian media; contextualises the site as a fortified underground complex near the Natanz nuclear complex - **Sunday Guardian Live** (India, en) — Sunday Guardian Live reports Trump's warning ('Tell the Iranians to be Ready') and identifies Pickaxe Mountain as a heavily fortified underground facility near the Natanz nuclear complex. The Indian paper frames the threat as part of escalating US pressure, running alongside the third-night strikes. > "US President Trump announced that the US will soon target Pickaxe Mountain, a heavily fortified underground facility near Iran's Natanz nuclear complex." Source: https://sundayguardianlive.com/world/us-iran-war-latest-update-trump-signals-imminent-strike-on-irans-fortified-pickaxe-mountain-nuclear-complex-tell-the-iranians-to-be-ready-235973/ ### Pro-Israel US outlet; confirms Trump ordered the third consecutive night of strikes alongside the Pickaxe Mountain threat - **JNS (Jewish News Syndicate)** (United States, en) — JNS reports Trump's direct quote ('We're going to take out Pickaxe Mountain') and confirms he ordered a third consecutive night of strikes against Iran on the same day. The outlet frames this as deliberate escalation pressure on Tehran. > "'We're going to take out Pickaxe Mountain,' Trump says, of Iranian nuclear site. The US president ordered a third consecutive night of strikes against the Islamic Republic." Source: https://www.jns.org/news/u-s-news/were-going-to-take-out-pickaxe-mountain-trump-says-of-iranian-nuclear-site ### Pakistani media; foregrounds the nuclear-strike dimension and Iran's ongoing nuclear tensions with the US - **The News International (Pakistan)** (Pakistan, en) — The News International leads with the nuclear-escalation angle, quoting Trump saying the US could strike 'relatively soon' and situating the threat within continuing tensions over Iran's nuclear programme. > "US President Donald Trump has said the United States could launch strikes on Iran's Pickaxe Mountain relatively soon, as tensions between Washington and Tehran continue over Iran's nuclear..." Source: https://www.thenews.com.pk/latest/1409053-trump-says-the-us-could-strike-irans-pickaxe-mountain-relatively-soon ### Indian media; reports Trump placing the site explicitly 'on the list' for a possible strike - **Free Press Journal (India)** (India, en) — Free Press Journal reports Trump calling Pickaxe Mountain 'on the list' for a possible US strike, an explicit statement that the site is a named target. > "US President Donald Trump said Iran's Pickaxe Mountain nuclear facility remains on the list for a possible US strike." Source: https://www.freepressjournal.in/world/president-trump-says-irans-pickaxe-mountain-nuclear-site-on-the-list-for-possible-us-strike ### Israeli media; reports Iran's army counter-strike against a US naval vessel, absent from US-centric coverage - **Haaretz** (Israel, en) — Haaretz live blog captures the full escalation picture: US CENTCOM confirms the third consecutive night of strikes, while Iranian state TV reports the Iranian army struck a 'hostile' US vessel with cruise missiles, a detail absent from most Western reports. > "US military launches third consecutive night of strikes against Iran, CENTCOM says. Iran's state TV cites Iranian army as saying it targeted a 'hostile' US vessel with cruise missiles." Source: https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/israel-security/2026-07-13/ty-article-live/one-killed-four-wounded-in-u-s-strike-in-southwestern-iran-state-media-says/0000019f-591e-de66-a5bf-5b5f62030000 ### unlabelled - **CryptoBriefing** (Global, en) — Source: https://cryptobriefing.com/us-president-hints-at-potential-military-action-on-irans-pickaxe-mountain-site/ - **Central Oregon Daily (AP)** (United States, en) — Source: https://www.centraloregondaily.com/news/nation-world/us-launches-third-straight-day-of-strikes-on-iran/article_28352ae6-babd-5ddc-8d3a-9505bc45f551.html - **Cleveland Jewish News** (United States, en) — Source: https://www.clevelandjewishnews.com/jns/were-going-to-take-out-pickaxe-mountain-trump-says-of-iranian-nuclear-site/article_e6862404-4be7-57ec-9fb1-9de2db0a84a7.html - **The Hill** (United States, en) — Source: https://thehill.com/policy/defense/5966603-trump-threatens-pickaxe-mountain-iran/ - **The Hill** (United States, en) — Source: https://thehill.com/policy/defense/5965142-centcom-launches-precision-munitions-against-iran-facilities/ - **The Hill** (United States, en) — Source: https://thehill.com/policy/defense/5966550-us-military-strikes-iran/ - **Times of Israel** (Israel, en) — Source: https://www.timesofisrael.com/trump-weighs-taking-out-pickaxe-nuclear-site-as-us-strikes-iran-for-3rd-night-in-a-row/ - **Times of Israel** (Israel, en) — Source: https://www.timesofisrael.com/trump-weighs-taking-out-pickaxe-nuclear-site-in-iran/ - **Times of Israel** (Israel, en) — Source: https://www.timesofisrael.com/liveblog_entry/trump-weighs-ordering-big-fat-shot-on-irans-pickaxe-mountain-nuclear-facility/ - **Times of Israel** (Israel, en) — Source: https://www.timesofisrael.com/liveblog_entry/trump-weighs-ordering-big-fat-shot-on-irans-pickaxe-mountain-nuclear-site/ - **Times of Israel** (Israel, en) — Source: https://www.timesofisrael.com/liveblog-july-13-2026/ - **Detroit News** (United States, en) — Source: https://www.detroitnews.com/story/news/world/2026/07/13/trump-iran-strait-of-hormuz/90899646007/ ## Across the graph - Related: [[iran-us-strikes-jul13]], [[iran-nuclear-iaea-dispute-june2026]], [[iran-iaea-nuclear-access-standoff]], [[iran-irgc-gulf-strikes-jul13]] - Entities: Iran, Person:donald Trump, Place:strait of Hormuz --- Canonical: https://rbtfl.xyz/en/n/iran-pickaxe-nuclear-jul13