MOAB bomb in new US plans to strike the Islamic Republic; Pickaxe Mountain near Natanz on the list

The US military has drawn up new plans to strike the Islamic Republic that provide for the use of the GBU-43/B bomb, known as the MOAB or "Mother of All Bombs" and the largest non-nuclear bomb in the US arsenal. According to several informed US officials, the plans target the Islamic Republic's energy infrastructure and nuclear sites and would be carried out only if Donald Trump orders combat operations to resume.

One of the officials said Trump has ordered the military to prepare new strike packages that cover a large number of energy facilities and the option of using the MOAB. According to these officials, the plans for striking nuclear sites, including "Pickaxe Mountain" near Natanz, explicitly call for the use of this bomb; the US and Israel believe the Islamic Republic keeps parts of its nuclear programme at this site. The strikes could take place before or after the US midterm elections.

Military officials doubt the MOAB's effectiveness

According to the same officials, the MOAB probably lacks the penetrating power to destroy Pickaxe Mountain, which is protected by layers of granite, and the same is true of the Islamic Republic's other deeply buried nuclear sites. One source described the bomb as a weapon for clearing an area and for psychological effect, not designed to penetrate deep underground. Some officials privately doubt that the White House has a strategy for ending the war, and said some of the options were designed to give Trump a symbolic way out, including reopening the Strait of Hormuz.

A White House official said the White House does not comment on sensitive military plans and that Trump is keeping all options on the table so that the Islamic Republic never obtains a nuclear weapon. A Pentagon official also said the US Department of War plans for a wide range of operational scenarios.

What is the MOAB

The MOAB weighs about 9,800 kilograms, is GPS-guided and detonates before hitting the ground so as to send the blast wave in all directions. It has been used only once, in April 2017 on Trump's orders, against Islamic State tunnels in Afghanistan's Nangarhar province.

The plans have come to light as Trump, on Wednesday, 14 October in Arizona, said he had promised the Islamic Republic not to kill its leaders again, and having earlier announced that he would not launch a new attack before the midterm elections; even so, some of his advisers have said privately that it is unclear whether this decision is final. Last week, Benjamin Netanyahu had also discussed with Trump a new joint operation against the Islamic Republic's nuclear facilities.

The US military has put its largest non-nuclear bomb on the list of options for striking the Islamic Republic's nuclear and energy facilities.