Netanyahu Warns UAE President of Iran's Underground Nuclear Program and Imminent Attack
Translated & summarized from Now 14 by baba
The story in 5 lines · by baba
- Iran is rapidly building an underground nuclear facility called 'Pickaxe Mountain'.
- The site is designed to be highly resistant to aerial attacks.
- Netanyahu warned the UAE president of an imminent Iranian regional attack.
- Intelligence suggests Iran is moving sensitive nuclear activities underground.
- Israel shared this intelligence with UAE and Saudi officials.
Israeli intelligence has revealed that Iran is dramatically accelerating construction at an underground site known as "Pickaxe Mountain," located south of Natanz. Satellite imagery analyzed by the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) indicates a shift from excavation to internal construction and tunnel fortification, aimed at creating a facility resistant to bunker-buster bombs. This fortified complex, carved deep into granite, is seen as a significant effort by Iran to protect its nuclear capabilities.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu shared this intelligence, along with an urgent warning of a potential imminent regional attack by Tehran within weeks, with UAE President Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed during a meeting in Abu Dhabi. The intelligence also suggests Iran may be preparing to assemble advanced centrifuges, store critical components, or even establish a protected enrichment hall deep underground.
CSIS deputy director Joseph Rogers explained to CNN that the site's depth and the surrounding granite make it extremely difficult to destroy from the air, potentially beyond the reach of the most powerful bunker-penetrating bombs in the U.S. arsenal. While no active enrichment facility is currently indicated, the accelerated construction signals an intent to move sensitive nuclear activities from exposed locations to this fortified underground site.
Netanyahu also presented intelligence to a Saudi security official present at the meeting, indicating Iran's preparation for a broad regional offensive in the coming weeks. This warning comes amid increased activity by pro-Iranian militias, ongoing threats from Yemen's Houthis, and heightened tensions in the Strait of Hormuz and Bab al-Mandab.
Israel's decision to share this specific intelligence with its Gulf partners aims to demonstrate that Tehran is not merely engaging in conventional attrition but is actively creating hardened underground infrastructure that would be difficult to target in the future. The "Pickaxe Mountain" issue has become a critical and urgent focus in security discussions between Israel and its regional allies.
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