With the Iran-US war reigniting after a brief lull, the United Nations atomic watchdog reportedly said it observed construction activity at Iran’s Pickaxe Mountain, a heavily-fortified site suspected of housing nuclear-related activities.
The International Atomic Energy Agency has yet not inspected the tunnel complex but remote imagery indicates new movement at the site just south of Tehran’s main uranium-enrichment plant, IAEA Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi said Thursday, Bloomberg reported.
“There are some indications that there is movement around this construction site,” Grossi was quoted as saying. “We don’t have any concrete information as to activities that may be taking place there.”
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Pickaxe Mountain, located near Iran's heavily damaged Natanz uranium enrichment facility, is a fortified site with two deeply buried tunnel complexes.
Grossi made the remarks after the IAEA’s board of governors referred Iran’s nuclear file to the UN Security Council for non-compliance with requirements related to its atomic activities.
Satellite images at the centre of debate
Earlier, Centre for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) cited new satellite imagery that allegedly showed heightened construction activity in 2026 on Pickaxe. Analysis can neither confirm nor deny reports that Iran moved centrifuges into the site, but the nature of activity suggests the facility is not yet capable of enriching uranium, CSIS said in its report. The think tank noted that the ‘images reveal more road activity at Pickaxe Mountain in 2026 than at any point in the site’s history.’
{{/usCountry}}Earlier, Centre for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) cited new satellite imagery that allegedly showed heightened construction activity in 2026 on Pickaxe. Analysis can neither confirm nor deny reports that Iran moved centrifuges into the site, but the nature of activity suggests the facility is not yet capable of enriching uranium, CSIS said in its report. The think tank noted that the ‘images reveal more road activity at Pickaxe Mountain in 2026 than at any point in the site’s history.’
{{/usCountry}}US President Donald Trump also mentioned the Pickaxe at a Republican rally on Wednesday and said, “We notice there’s a little activity at Pickaxe. I would advise Iran not to get cute because we will have to hit them very hard.”
Trump has been threatening strikes on Pickaxe Mountain since at least mid-July.
Pickaxe is located in the Zagros Mountains 220 km (140 miles) south of Tehran and the activity on the nuclear site was initiated after saboteurs attacked an Iranian centrifuge workshop six years ago.
“They said at the time, ‘we are going to put everything in tunnels, inside a mountain.’” Grossi was quoted as saying. “This was going to be impermeable and protected from attacks.”
Iran-US trade barbs
Meanwhile, Iran has accused the US and Israel of cloaking military strikes against its nuclear facilities beneath the legal authority wielded by inspectors at the United Nations nuclear watchdog.
“The aggressions of the Israeli regime and America against Iran just a few hours after its adoption, are solid proofs of the sponsors’ hidden agenda,” Iran’s IAEA envoy wrote in the 11-page document, which urged diplomats to “condemn the unlawful attacks", Bloomberg reported.
Amid the developments and increased skirmishes, the US earlier tried increasing diplomatic pressure on Iran by proposing that Tehran be referred to the United Nations Security Council over its stonewalling of nuclear inspectors, who have been unable to verify the location of the country’s stockpile of near-weapons-grade uranium.