Trump threatens to strike Iran's Pickaxe Mountain 'very soon'

September 5, 2026 at 02:56 PM2 min

This digest was compiled by AI from multiple sources — links to the originals are below.

US President Donald Trump said Washington may strike Iran's Pickaxe Mountain 'very soon' in remarks to reporters in the Oval Office on Friday. The threat came hours before an Iranian oil tanker off Kharg Island was struck by four US missiles, according to Iranian outlet Khabar Fouri. Trump's remarks echo a similar threat he made in mid-July, while the war between the US and Israel and Iran has entered its seventh month.

Key Facts

Trump made the threat against Pickaxe Mountain while speaking to reporters in the Oval Office on Friday, saying the US knows 'everybody that's moving at Pickaxe' and across Iran.
An Iranian oil tanker off Kharg Island was struck by four US missiles hours after Trump's threat, according to Iranian news outlet Khabar Fouri.
Kharg Island handles about 90 percent of Iran's oil exports.
Pickaxe Mountain, known in Iran as Kuh-e Kolang Gaz La, sits roughly 220km south of Tehran and 2km from the Natanz enrichment plant.
Talks related to Iran's nuclear programme have remained in limbo since a 60-day negotiating window expired in mid-August without a deal.

Trump's Threat

Trump made the threat against Pickaxe Mountain as he was speaking to reporters in the Oval Office on Friday, saying the US knows 'everybody that's moving at Pickaxe' and across Iran. His remarks echoed a similar threat he made back in mid-July, when he stated on the Hugh Hewitt Show: 'We're going to take out Pickaxe Mountain. Tell the Iranians to be ready … We'll probably give Pickaxe a shot relatively soon.' The latest threat comes more than six months into the war that the US and Israel launched on Iran on February 28, amid mixed messages about the war from the Trump administration. On Friday, Trump sought to downplay the war in Iran, calling it 'small potatoes', while a day earlier, at a White House news briefing, Vice President JD Vance appeared to suggest the conflict had cooled and to shrug off an alleged US strike on a wedding in southern Iran with 'sometimes things happen'.

Kharg Island Strike

Just hours after Trump made that threat, an Iranian oil tanker off Kharg Island was struck by four US missiles, according to Iranian news outlet Khabar Fouri. Kharg Island is the main hub for Iran's oil exports, handling about 90 percent. The US and Iran have exchanged attacks this week, including a US hit close to Iran's oil infrastructure on Kharg Island.

Pickaxe Mountain Site

Known in Iran as Kuh-e Kolang Gaz La, the site sits roughly 220km (140 miles) south of the capital Tehran, in Isfahan province, and just 2km (1.2 miles) from the Natanz enrichment plant. Iran says it is not undertaking any work at the Natanz nuclear site. Its Khatam al-Anbiya central military headquarters has warned that bombing the nearby mountain would amount to a renewal of war across the region, at a time when the Trump administration would prefer to keep the war contained before pivotal mid-term elections.