English Version: US May Strike Iran’s Pickaxe Mountain Soon; US Hits Iranian Oil Tankers Near Kharg

President Donald Trump warned on Friday that the United States could strike Iran’s heavily fortified underground nuclear-linked site known as Pickaxe Mountain “very soon,” saying U.S. forces are closely monitoring activity across Iran and would respond forcefully to any threat.  Separately, U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) said American forces targeted three Iranian crude oil tankers—including one near Kharg Island—after Iran’s IRGC fired ballistic missiles at two U.S. warships patrolling regional waters.
Speaking to reporters at the Oval Office, Trump said U.S. intelligence has detailed information on movements around the facility and warned: “We know everybody that’s moving at Pickaxe… And if anything goes bad, we hit them; we hit them hard.”
The site is located near Iran’s Natanz uranium-enrichment facility.�
Reports describe it as an underground complex with two deeply buried tunnel systems, considered more resistant to conventional air strikes than surface installations.
Citing Israeli intelligence, The Wall Street Journal has reported that Iran may have moved thousands of centrifuges to the location.�
Radar strikes and nuclear claims
Trump also referenced recent U.S. strikes on Iranian radar systems, saying American forces destroyed advanced radars on two separate occasions after Iran replaced equipment knocked out in an earlier attack.  He reiterated his claim that five months of U.S. military action have prevented Iran from acquiring a nuclear weapon.
U.S. hits Iranian oil tankers after IRGC missile fire
CENTCOM said the strikes on the tankers came after the IRGC launched ballistic missiles toward two U.S. Navy warships; no U.S. personnel were injured.  CENTCOM commander Admiral Brad Cooper issued a direct warning to the IRGC: “If you shoot at two of our ships, we will impose an even higher economic cost – taking out three of yours.”
The strikes hit tankers off Kharg Island, off Jask, and in the Gulf of Oman.
U.S. officials said two carriers were disabled and a third was destroyed.
The action followed earlier Iranian media reports that a tanker near Kharg had been hit by U.S. missiles.
Escalating backdrop
The latest threats and strikes occur amid renewed tit-for-tat attacks in the Gulf and around the Strait of Hormuz, with both sides accusing each other of targeting ships and military assets.  Trump has warned that any Iranian retaliation would be met with an even harder and higher-level response.