Tucker Carlson Says Trump May Be Days From Nuclear Strike on Iran

Commentator Tucker Carlson claimed in a long post on X that the Trump administration “may be within days of launching a nuclear strike on Iran.” He said Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is pushing for a strike on Pickaxe Mountain, a fortified site in central Iran.

The post, published early on Nov. 2, had passed 16 million views within hours. Carlson cited no documents and relied on an unnamed “informed observer.”

Neither the White House nor Israel has confirmed the claims. Trump ruled out using nuclear weapons on Iran in an Oct. 15 interview with Newsmax.

What Carlson Claims

Carlson wrote that no conventional weapon in the U.S. arsenal can penetrate 300 feet of granite to reach the tunnels. “The only military option is a nuclear strike,” he wrote.

He wrote that Netanyahu “has been pushing hard for one.” “Bibi calls Trump about it every day,” he quoted the informed observer as saying.

Carlson said Trump is likely to decide by Nov. 7 whether to use nuclear weapons. “To his credit, he’s hesitating,” he wrote.

He named Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and CENTCOM commander Brad Cooper as pushing to restart major combat operations. He said Secretary of State Marco Rubio and CIA Director John Ratcliffe are following Netanyahu’s lead.

Vice President JD Vance and envoy Steve Witkoff, Carlson wrote, are arguing that a deal with Iran can be made.

What Trump Has Said

Trump told Newsmax on Oct. 15: “No, I wouldn’t use nuclear. We don’t have to.” He said the “mother of all bombs” is “not nuclear at all,” according to a transcript of the interview.

On Saturday, Trump said the U.S. still has to “take care” of one or two Iranian nuclear sites. “We can do that in 10 minutes. We have that planned,” he said, Axios reported.

Axios, citing one Israeli and one U.S. source, reported that Trump and Netanyahu had a “tough” call on Saturday. It said Netanyahu is pressing for a strike right after Tuesday’s midterms, while Trump wants talks to play out.

The White House and Netanyahu’s office declined to comment on the call. Clash Report covered the call.

In April, Carlson warned that Trump might use nuclear weapons on Iran. Trump told the New York Post: “Tucker’s a low IQ person that has absolutely no idea what’s going on,” the Post reported. Carlson had earlier urged officials not to obey a mass-attack order.

The Target

Pickaxe Mountain, or Kuh-e Kolang Gaz La, is a tunnel complex about two kilometers south of the Natanz enrichment plant, according to the Center for Strategic and International Studies. The Institute for Science and International Security (ISIS) says construction began in the fall of 2020.

ISIS estimates the facility sits at least 100 meters deep. That is close to the 300 feet Carlson cited. The site has not been struck so far.

ISIS imagery from Oct. 7 showed the eastern tunnel entrances still blocked by earth, its analysts wrote. They said that suggests the site is neither operational nor under major construction.

The same report said bunker-busters aimed at ventilation shafts and entrances would make the most sense. It also said the U.S. may use the MOAB, the largest non-nuclear bomb in its arsenal. Clash Report earlier covered Israeli claims that centrifuges were moved into the tunnels.

Netanyahu’s Position

Carlson wrote that Netanyahu “can’t form a government” after last week’s election unless Trump brokers a deal giving him 61 Knesset seats. “He needs this war,” he wrote.

Israel’s Oct. 27 vote left no bloc with a majority. Netanyahu’s bloc won 53 of 120 seats, Gadi Eisenkot’s opposition bloc 48 and Arab-led parties 19, according to Al Jazeera.

Carlson also wrote that Netanyahu flew secretly to Abu Dhabi on Sept. 27 to enlist the UAE in an attack on Iran. The Emiratis refused, he said.

The Fallout Carlson Describes

Carlson wrote that fallout from a ground explosion at Pickaxe Mountain would contaminate the Persian Gulf and poison the water supply of 100 million people. He said 11 of the world’s roughly 850 supertankers were badly damaged in Hormuz in October alone.

He claimed Russia has told at least two governments that a U.S. nuclear strike would free it to use nuclear weapons against Ukraine. Pakistan and India would be tempted to do the same against each other, he wrote, as would North Korea against Seoul.

“After the first nuclear strike, World War Three is inevitable,” Carlson wrote. He also claimed the administration has quietly rewritten U.S. nuclear doctrine since February to make first use of “battlefield nukes” easier, without citing any document.

Carlson wrote that people who have spoken to Iranian decision-makers describe a consensus in Tehran that a deal is worth making.