Trump Weighs Using 'Mother of All Bombs' Against Iran as US Draws Up New Strike Plans

 

The United States military has developed new strike plans that include potentially using the so-called "mother of all bombs" against Iranian energy infrastructure and nuclear sites should President Donald Trump order a resumption of combat operations, CNN reported on Thursday, citing multiple US officials familiar with the matter.

Main News Report

• The plans envisage the use of the GBU-43/B Massive Ordnance Air Blast Bomb, known as the MOAB — the largest non-nuclear bomb in the US arsenal — which would mark a notable escalation in the conflict with Iran, CNN said.
• The strikes could be ordered either before or after the US midterm elections on 3 November, according to the officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity.
• Trump directed officials to draw up options for further attacks targeting "a lot of energy infrastructure," with dropping a MOAB among the options, the sources told CNN.
• The plans specifically contemplate using the massive bomb against Pickaxe Mountain, a heavily fortified underground site near the Natanz nuclear facility where US and Israeli officials believe Tehran has stored components of its nuclear programme, reports said.
• Reuters also carried the story on Thursday but said it could not immediately verify the CNN report.

Background Context

The reported plans come as the United States has been bombing Iran for more than seven months in a war that has grown deeply unpopular with the American public, CNN noted. While some administration figures have characterised the war as essentially won, Trump has stopped short of declaring victory and said the US still has "unfinished business" in the country.

Trump has repeatedly vowed to prevent Tehran from obtaining nuclear weapons and has warned that additional military action remains an option if Iran refuses to reach an agreement. According to reports, military officials have also discussed a scenario in which further strikes are followed by a declaration of victory and a rapid withdrawal of US forces from the Middle East — described internally as taking place "prior to US retrograde in CENTCOM AOR".

This blog has been tracking the widening confrontation in the region: the surge in attacks on shipping near the Strait of Hormuz, the Houthi missile strike on the Saudi Aramco headquarters, and the EU's postponement of its Gulf summit in Saudi Arabia — all threads of the same escalating conflict.

Reactions and Statements

• The White House: has not ruled out using the MOAB. "President Trump keeps all options on the table to ensure that Iran can never have a nuclear weapon," a White House official said, declining to comment on the plans themselves.
• US military officials: sources familiar with the planning discussions told CNN they doubt how effective the MOAB would be in accomplishing Trump's stated strategic objectives or tipping the balance of the war — including whether it could penetrate the granite layers protecting Iran's underground facilities.
• Strategy sceptics: some officials privately question whether the White House has a strategy that incorporates these strike options in a way that could actually end the war, CNN reported.
• Iran had not publicly responded to the report at the time of publication.

Why This News Matters

• For Pakistan, the story matters because any new American strikes on Iran's energy infrastructure would send shockwaves through oil markets and the Gulf — the region where millions of Pakistanis live and work.
• The potential deployment of the largest non-nuclear bomb in the US arsenal, for the first time in this war, would be a major escalation with consequences far beyond Iran's borders.
• The "strike, declare victory and withdraw" scenario sketched in the plans could reshape the security of the entire region, from the Strait of Hormuz to the Red Sea.

Future Developments

• The key question is whether Trump orders the strikes before or after the 3 November midterm elections — and whether the MOAB option moves from a contingency plan to an authorised strike package.
• Watch for any Iranian response to the report, which could itself escalate tensions in the Gulf.
• Pakistan will be watching closely: further escalation in the Gulf has direct implications for energy prices and for the safety of Pakistani nationals in the region.

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