The U.S. military has developed new strike plans that include potentially using the "mother of all bombs" against Iranian energy infrastructure and nuclear sites if President Donald Trump orders a resumption of combat operations, CNN reported, citing multiple U.S. officials.
The options could be executed before or after the November midterm elections. One source told CNN that Trump ordered the military to develop additional strike packages covering "a lot of energy infrastructure" and the potential use of a MOAB, with the phrasing used in the planning suggesting the attack could come "prior to US retrograde in CENTCOM AOR (area of responsibility)" — meaning Washington could strike, attempt to declare victory, and quickly pull its forces out of the region.
A second source said the plans for Iranian nuclear sites, including Pickaxe Mountain — where the U.S. and Israel believe Tehran has stored components of its nuclear program — explicitly call for using the MOAB. Trump has repeatedly threatened to strike Pickaxe, and his stated goal is to ensure Iran can never obtain a nuclear weapon.
"The MOAB is a massive information operation type weapon that is great for huge area clearance but not much else. It is definitely not designed as a deep penetration warhead." — a source familiar with the military planning discussions, speaking to CNN
The GBU-43/B Massive Ordnance Air Blast is the largest non-nuclear bomb in the U.S. arsenal: GPS-guided, weighing 21,600 pounds, and capable of destroying an area equivalent to about nine city blocks. But officials familiar with the planning questioned whether it could actually achieve Trump's objectives. Pickaxe Mountain is believed to be fortified by layers of granite deep underground, and the MOAB is an air-burst weapon — it detonates before hitting the ground rather than penetrating. Its huge blast radius also raises the prospect of civilian casualties if it is used against energy targets near populated areas. Some of the options, one source said, amount to a "fireworks show" — a symbolic strike that gives Trump an off-ramp from the war even if it achieves none of his stated goals.
Trump has publicly announced that he would not take new military action before the midterms, though several advisers said privately they did not know whether that statement was definitive. Asked about the plans, a White House official told CNN they do not comment on sensitive military plans that may or may not exist, adding: "President Trump keeps all options on the table to ensure that Iran can never have a nuclear weapon." The Pentagon said it "plans for a wide range of operational scenarios to execute Presidential and Secretary-level direction and to ensure mission success in any operational environment." Reuters, which relayed the report, said it could not immediately verify it. Trump was the first president to use the MOAB in combat, authorizing its drop on an Islamic State tunnel complex in Afghanistan in 2017.
The message to Tehran is unmistakable: the president's stated goal stands — Iran will never get a nuclear weapon — and the Pentagon is making sure he has every option, from the world's largest conventional bomb down, ready if he decides to act. The decision — and the timing, before or after the midterms — rests with the president alone.
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