Iran not rebuilding obliterated nuclear sites but is expanding hidden facility, report finds

Newly released satellite imagery shows Iran has made minimal effort to rebuild its damaged uranium enrichment facilities in the nearly four months since U.S. and Israeli forces destroyed them but has stepped up construction on a hidden site. 

The new photos, released this week in a new report from the Center for Strategic and International Studies, reveal Iran has made little to no effort to rehabilitate the facilities at Fordo, Natanz and Isfahan.

Researchers said the images prove U.S. and Israeli strikes on the facilities have halted uranium enrichment.

Israel bombed Iran in June, asserting that the Islamic Republic was preparing to develop nuclear weapons. The Israeli attacks hit Iran’s enrichment facilities, top military brass and key atomic researchers.

The U.S. launched its own strikes on June 22, hitting Iran’s underground enrichment sites with B-2 bunker-buster bombs. 

The report notes that since the strikes, Iran has shifted its focus to a new underground facility just to the north of the damaged Isfahan site. The facility, dubbed Pickaxe Mountain, began construction as an underground centrifuge assembly hall in 2020. Now Iran is reconsidering the facility’s use.

CSIS says Iran could be contributing more resources to Pickaxe Mountain’s construction or building a new clandestine facility. 

“Regardless of the true explanation, the main takeaway is that this increased activity points to the renewed need for greater transparency into Iran’s nuclear activities and ambitions, which only the IAEA and international diplomacy can provide,” CSIS researchers wrote in the report, referring to the International Atomic Energy Agency, the U.N.’s nuclear watchdog.

If Pickaxe Mountain were converted into a new covert enrichment site, it could be used to further enrich Iran’s stockpile of 400 kg of uranium. That prospect is troubling for nuclear watchdogs, who see Tehran’s decision to expel independent atomic inspectors as a deadly warning. IAEA Director-General Rafael Grossi stressed that Iran’s stockpile still constitutes a major problem, even if the Islamic Republic isn’t actively enriching.

“However, the nuclear material enriched at 60% is still in Iran. And this is one of the points we are discussing because we need to go back there and to confirm that the material is there and it’s not being diverted to any other use,” Mr. Grossi told reporters at the United Nations on Wednesday.

If Iran continues to pursue uranium enrichment without regular inspections, it could be found in violation of the Non-Proliferation Treaty, which Tehran has repeatedly threatened to leave. The U.S. and Israel would likely view such a move as aggressive and could launch more strikes.

Since the June war, Iran has vowed to rebuild its nuclear program despite threats of further retaliation from Western powers. The Islamic republic has long insisted that its program is key to its national sovereignty and has refused calls from the U.S. and Israel to eliminate its enrichment program in exchange for sanctions relief. 

The new site could be a major challenge for any future U.S.-Iran nuclear negotiations, which stopped after the strikes in June.