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The US military has developed new strike plans that include the potential use of the “mother of all bombs” against Iranian energy infrastructure and nuclear sites if President Donald Trump orders a resumption of combat operations, CNN reported Wednesday, citing multiple US officials familiar with the plans.
The proposed use of the GBU-43/B Massive Ordnance Air Blast Bomb (MOAB), the largest non-nuclear bomb in the US arsenal, would mark a significant escalation in the conflict with Iran, although officials have questioned whether the weapon could achieve Washington’s military objectives.
According to CNN, Trump has directed the military to prepare additional strike options against Iranian targets, including energy infrastructure and facilities associated with the country’s nuclear program. The plans could be activated before or after the upcoming US midterm elections if the president decides to resume major combat operations.
One source familiar with the military planning told CNN that the proposed strikes could take place before a US military withdrawal from the US Central Command area of responsibility, potentially allowing the administration to launch further attacks before declaring victory and withdrawing its forces.
A second source said plans for strikes against Iranian nuclear sites, including a suspected underground facility at Pickaxe Mountain, explicitly included the potential deployment of the MOAB.
Trump has repeatedly threatened to target Pickaxe Mountain, where Washington and Israel believe Iran has stored components of its nuclear program. The president has maintained that preventing Tehran from obtaining a nuclear weapon remains a central objective of the US campaign.
READ: Axios: Netanyahu discussed joint strike on Iran with Trump before Israeli election
A US official told CNN that military planners routinely prepare a range of options for policymakers, from lower-intensity operations to more powerful strikes against heavily fortified targets.
However, the MOAB’s effectiveness against deeply buried nuclear facilities remains uncertain.
The GPS-guided bomb can devastate a large surface area equivalent to approximately nine city blocks, but it is not designed to penetrate deeply underground. Sources cited by CNN said the weapon would likely struggle to destroy facilities protected by thick layers of granite and other fortifications.
“The MOAB is a massive information operation type weapon that is great for huge area clearance but not much else,” a source familiar with the military planning discussions told CNN, describing it as unsuitable for deep penetration.
If deployed, the bomb could cause extensive destruction at the point of impact, while its large blast radius could raise serious concerns about civilian casualties, particularly if strikes targeted energy infrastructure near populated areas or other civilian facilities.
Despite these limitations, US officials have reportedly considered the weapon’s potential psychological impact as part of the administration’s broader military options.
One source told CNN that the president could face pressure to take further action against Iran despite uncertainty over whether additional strikes would force Tehran to accept Washington’s demands.
The source suggested the MOAB could serve as a means of exerting psychological pressure, particularly given the limitations of available munitions against deeply buried targets.
READ: Iran’s Revolutionary Guards warn US would ‘regret’ any new attack
This work by Middle East Monitor is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
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