President Donald Trump is vowing the U.S. military will soon launch strikes on Iran's Pickaxe Mountain, a fortified underground facility the U.S. and Israel suspect could be used for nuclear activity.
Trump admitted Tuesday that while there is no hard evidence Iran is using the site for nuclear purposes, he said they "may have" stored centrifuges there.
"We'll be hitting that area very, probably pretty soon," Trump said. "There's not a thing they can do about it. You know, normally I wouldn't say that. If I thought they could do something about it, I would never say that. But we'll be hitting that area pretty soon, and very heavily."
Trump also dismissed the idea of meeting with Iranian leaders to negotiate an end to the war, while warning of more U.S. attacks to come.
"I will tell you, they want to desperately meet," he said. "And until they’re ready to meet in a meaningful way, we have no interest in meeting."
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The comments come as U.S. Central Command has carried out strikes against Iran for at least 10 consecutive days, while Iran has continued targeting U.S. allies and bases in the Middle East. The ongoing escalation has essentially voided a memorandum of understanding agreed to by both countries to bring an end to the war.
The U.S. military has said the strikes are intended to degrade Iranian capabilities used to attack commercial vessels and civilian mariners transiting the Strait of Hormuz. Although Iran's military has been weakened by the strikes, it has continued to maintain control of the strait.
Meanwhile, the U.S. military says nearly 100 service members have been injured over the past two weeks, though the vast majority have returned to duty. Seventeen U.S. service members have died since the war began in late February.
