Trump says activity detected at Iran’s Pickaxe Mountain, warns Tehran ‘not to get cute’

DALLAS: US President Donald Trump said on Wednesday that Washington could target Iran’s Pickaxe Mountain site, warning Tehran against taking any action he considers provocative.

“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 said during an address at the Republican Party’s midterm convention.

Pickaxe Mountain is a fortified underground facility located near Iran’s Natanz uranium enrichment complex, which has suffered extensive damage. The site contains two tunnel complexes buried deep underground.

Trump has repeatedly threatened to strike the facility, with warnings dating back to at least mid-July.

The issue comes as higher oil and gas prices linked to the US-Israeli war on Iran have become a growing political concern for Trump and Republicans ahead of the US midterm elections in November.

The U.S. and ​Israel attacked Iran on ​February 28 and ⁠Iran responded with its own strikes on Israel and Gulf states that host U.S. bases. U.S.-Israeli strikes on Iran and Israeli attacks on ​Lebanon have killed thousands and displaced millions.

Trump also said he thought the war was going to end immediately after the midterms, alleging Tehran was trying to influence the elections that will determine whether the Republicans retain control of Congress.

Pickaxe Mountain lies 220 km (140 miles) south of Tehran and 2 km from the Natanz complex.

The Natanz site, where two of Iran’s uranium enrichment plants were located, was struck in March as part of the U.S.-Israeli military attacks on Iran. Israel also hit Natanz during last year’s 12-day Israel-Iran war.

The tunnel facility under construction at Pickaxe Mountain was not targeted in either of those wars, according to the Institute for Science and International Security, a U.S.-based think tank focused on nuclear non-proliferation.

Trump has cited weakening Iran’s nuclear capabilities as one of his war objectives. Iran does not have nuclear weapons and says its uranium enrichment program is for peaceful purposes. The U.S. is a nuclear power. Israel is widely believed to ​be the only nuclear-armed country in the Middle East but has not confirmed or denied it publicly.