Iran Denies Nuclear Activity at Pickaxe Mountain, Dismisses Trump's Bombing Threat as Pretext
Iran has issued a strong denial regarding the existence of nuclear activities at the Pickaxe Mountain site, following a threat by United States President Donald Trump to bomb the area, which is suspected of housing a secret underground nuclear complex. The location is alleged to be the site of Tehran’s uranium enrichment facilities and nuclear centrifuges.
Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei, as reported by AFP and Anadolu Agency on Thursday (23/7/2026), accused the US of deliberately using the nuclear issue as a pretext to destroy Iran. “Washington’s obsessive focus on Kolang Kouh (Pickaxe Mountain), where no nuclear activity is taking place, is nothing more than a fabricated pretext for aggression, destruction, and sabotage,” Baghaei stated on social media platform X.
Baghaei stressed that Iran’s nuclear activities are fully reported to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), the United Nations’ nuclear watchdog. He further argued that repeated US attacks and threats against Iran’s nuclear facilities violate the UN Charter, international law, and relevant resolutions of the IAEA Board of Governors and the UN Security Council. According to Baghaei, this behaviour “reveals the deep-seated hostility of the United States towards Iran’s scientific progress and technological development.”
“The Iranian people stand firm and united, ready to confront with full force any hostile actions by the US or violations of their country’s sovereignty and national security,” the Foreign Ministry spokesman declared.
Trump had previously threatened to bomb Pickaxe Mountain after recent Israeli reports indicated that Iran had moved thousands of uranium enrichment centrifuges to the site last autumn. The mountain is a nuclear site located deep underground, near the Natanz enrichment facility, and Western intelligence suspects it is the location of an undeclared enrichment facility. When asked by reporters whether Iran had moved its nuclear centrifuges to the area, Trump responded, “We will hit that area in the near future, and very hard.” He added, “Maybe in the near future, and there is nothing they can do to stop it.” Speaking at the White House on Tuesday (21/7) local time, he noted, “Normally, I wouldn’t say that. If I thought they could do something about it, I would never say it, but we are going to hit that area in the near future, and very hard.” As of now, Trump has not yet acted on his threat.