Experts warn Pickaxe Mountain nuclear site could be used to build atomic weapon
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A leading American institute researching the Islamic Republic’s nuclear program sounded the alarm this week about the regime’s unmonitored underground site in the Zagros Mountains.
Inspectors from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) were not allowed to visit the secret site known as Mount Kazma.
The highly fortified facility raises serious doubts about Iran’s willingness to comply with the terms of the memorandum of understanding (MOU) reached with the Trump administration. The United States, together with Israel, launched Operation Epic Fury on February 28, 2026, targeting Iran’s nuclear and missile capabilities.
Experts from the Washington-based Institute for Science and International Security (ISIS) suggest halting work at Mount Pickaxe and allowing IAEA inspectors access would be an important good faith measure to test whether Iran is ready to abandon its pattern of deception.
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A satellite image shows an overview of the Mount Kazma tunnel complex in Natanz. (Report via Vantor/Reuters)
Spencer Faragasso, a senior member of the group covering Iran, North Korea, illicit trade and nuclear issues, wrote on maintain an enrichment facility.”
Iran used facilities in Natanz, Fordow and Isfahan to enrich uranium, the main ingredient of its nuclear weapons program.
Faragasso added: “If Iran is serious about negotiating, it should stop construction on Mount Kazma as a sign of good faith. So what can be expected from a regime as brutal and collaborative as Iran’s?”
The institute has published a detailed analysis of new satellite images showing ongoing activity at Mount Kazma from late June 2026.
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Vice President J.D. Vance before a meeting between the United States, Iran, Pakistan and Qatar at the Bürgenstock luxury hotel complex overlooking Lake Lucerne, Switzerland, on June 21, 2026. (Fabrice Coffrini/Keystone via AP)
The institute wrote: “At Mount Pickaxe, vehicle activity can be seen on the roads leading to the open set of Western tunnel portals, indicating that construction within the tunnel complex and hardening of the tunnel entrance is ongoing. The Memorandum of Understanding signed between the United States and Iran requires Iran to maintain the status quo, which should prohibit the construction of any nuclear-related facilities, including Mount Pickaxe.”
In late June, the IAEA declined to answer a detailed question from Fox News Digital about whether it would seek access to the Mount Ida facility. According to satellite images obtained by the institute, “There is little activity on Natanz. The access points to the underground enrichment halls have not been repaired.
“Personnel entrances have been destroyed and vehicle entrances have been seriously damaged. A single vehicle can be seen on the road outside the Pilot Fuel Enrichment Plant (PFEP), which was demolished in June 2025 but was later closed by Iran.”
As US-Iran talks began in Switzerland on Sunday, a dispute emerged over who controls and supervises unfrozen Iranian assets. (Fabrice Coffrini/Pool via Reuters)
The institute also said, “As of June 29, 2026, no activity was observed in Isfahan. The tunnel entrances are filled with soil.” ISIS followed developments in the Fordow region, buried in a mountain north of the holy Islamic city of Qom.
“At Fordow, as previously reported by the Institute, between May 10 and May 18, Iran added passive defensive measures in the form of earth/rock mounds and other objects to the roads leading to the tunnel entrances. The alternative placement of the piles/objects is very sensitive, creating a series of subterfuges, indicating that they were not designed as obstacles, but rather were intended to prevent the rapid entry and exit of any vehicle into the tunnels.”
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The institute added: “The June 21 Vantor image shows that objects found along the road remain there. The tunnel entrances at Fordow are also filled with soil.”
Fox News Digital sent questions to the State Department and the Iranian Mission to the United Nations.
