During the opening days of Operation Epic Fury, U.S. and Israeli airstrikes reportedly targeted the entrances of Iran’s top uranium enrichment sites, where the country’s stockpiles were buried during last June’s war.
However, it remains unclear whether Iran retrieved any or all of the highly enriched uranium before or during that conflict. Some estimates suggest Iran moved some material out from under the rubble at the Isfahan enrichment facility, which was severely damaged. The International Atomic Energy Agency, which has routinely monitored Iran’s highly enriched uranium stockpile over the years, has been unable to verify its location or condition over the past nine months.
President Trump said Monday that Iran was constructing a new nuclear site before the U.S. launched its current military campaign. He said the site was intended to be deep underground and protected by granite.
“The regime was trying to reconstitute its weapons program at a different site. They couldn’t go back to where they were — the three sites that we obliterated — but they were starting work at another site, a different site, different kind of a site, and that was protected by granite,” the president said. “They wanted it protected. Granite is pretty good, but they wanted it protected by a lot deeper, they wanted to go a lot deeper.”
U.S. officials say most of Iran’s highly enriched uranium lies buried underground at three enrichment sites: Isfahan, Natanz and Fordo.
Launching ground operations at the three sites to destroy or extract Iran’s highly enriched uranium would be a high-risk operation. In addition to contending with Iranian armed forces, U.S. troops would need to uncover the buried material, which could be time-consuming and costly.
The risk of radioactive contamination in the surrounding regions would require nuclear experts to accompany the mission to ensure that the highly enriched uranium is handled or diluted properly.
Still, the Trump administration is no stranger to deploying special operations forces on consequential missions. U.S. Special Forces led the ground operation that captured Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro in January without suffering casualties.
A possible ground incursion from U.S. forces is being discussed as the Trump administration faces intense scrutiny from lawmakers and critics over the war’s justification and conduct.
