IAEA Reports Construction Activity at Iran’s Pickaxe Mountain Site
Satellite imagery shows increased excavation and road work at the underground site, while the IAEA says it still cannot verify activity inside.
- On Thursday, IAEA Director-General Rafael Mariano Grossi reported construction activity at Iran's Pickaxe Mountain facility near Natanz, monitoring developments remotely through satellite imagery.
- A CSIS analysis of six years of imagery indicates the site has moved from large-scale excavation toward internal construction and external reinforcement to protect sensitive nuclear infrastructure from military attacks.
- Iran restricted IAEA access following damage during a 12-day conflict in June 2025, preventing the agency from independently verifying the current condition of Iran's stockpile of uranium enriched to near weapons-grade levels.
- President Donald Trump threatened strikes against the site on Friday, warning Tehran against further activity as the United States military develops a new bunker-buster munition for deeply buried facilities.
- The United States awarded a prototype contract for a new munition succeeding the GBU-57A Massive Ordnance Penetrator in September 2025, though analysts note the site remains incapable of enrichment work.
23 Articles
23 Articles
Satellite imagery shows new activity at a site near the main uranium enrichment plant south of Tehran.
UN nuclear watchdog spots construction activity at Iran’s suspected nuclear site: ‘There are some indications that…’
The IAEA said it’s observed construction activity at Iran’s Pickaxe Mountain, a heavily-fortified site suspected of housing nuclear-related activities.
At IAEA, construction activity was reported in the area of Mount Kuh-e Kolang, located 1.5 kilometres from the uranium enrichment plant in the Iranian city of Nathanze, which allegedly houses a Tehran nuclear programme facility. "Sputnik images indicate a new movement at a site south of the main Iranian uranium enrichment plant", said IAEA CEO Rafael Grossi on Thursday in a conversation with Bloomberg.
UN Nuclear Watchdog Confirms Activity at Iran’s Pickaxe Mountain
IAEA reports construction activity at Iran’s Pickaxe Mountain site
The International Atomic Energy Agency, IAEA, has detected signs of activity at Iran’s Pickaxe Mountain complex, a site that Western intelligence agencies have identified as a possible location for storing nuclear material. IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi told Bloomberg that satellite imagery reviewed by the UN nuclear watchdog showed indications of movement around the site, […] IAEA reports construction activity at Iran’s Pickaxe Mountain s…
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