Trump Considers Targeting Iran’s Deep Underground Nuclear Facility to Halt Program

Nuclear expert Andrea Stricker told the New York Post that attacking the tunnel entrances to Iran’s deeply buried Mount Makuh nuclear site could be the most effective way to disrupt its nuclear program. Conventional bunker-busting bombs may fail due to the facility’s depth of up to 140 meters beneath thick granite rock. Stricker suggested that destroying or sealing off the tunnel entrances with precision munitions would block access and enable continuous aerial surveillance.

President Donald Trump recently indicated that the United States is closely monitoring Mount Makuh and warned it could be targeted if Iran does not reach a nuclear agreement. Previous US and Israeli strikes delayed Iran’s nuclear progress by about 2.5 years, but Tehran continues to advance activities at secret sites. Mount Makuh, located roughly 220 kilometers from Tehran near the Natanz nuclear plant, was constructed around 2020 after earlier facilities were damaged.

While Iran claims the site is only for assembling advanced centrifuges, Western intelligence and research bodies suspect it also serves as an undeclared uranium enrichment and nuclear weapons backup facility. The site’s extensive tunnel systems are heavily fortified, making direct bunker destruction difficult. Satellite imagery shows ongoing construction and fortification efforts, which the US views as violations of prior agreements intended to freeze Iran’s nuclear status.

These developments have prompted explicit threats from Trump that the US will deliver a significant strike on Mount Makuh if Iran fails to reach a comprehensive deal. The facility was not targeted in previous strikes because it was not yet fully operational, but its growing activity has raised alarm in Washington.