{"id":559190,"date":"2026-07-25T17:04:11","date_gmt":"2026-07-25T17:04:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/559190\/"},"modified":"2026-07-25T17:04:11","modified_gmt":"2026-07-25T17:04:11","slug":"report-us-mulls-sending-special-forces-into-iran-to-seize-or-destroy-nuclear-materia","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/559190\/","title":{"rendered":"Report: US mulls sending special forces into Iran to seize or destroy nuclear materia"},"content":{"rendered":"

The operation could require thousands of troops to secure the sites, clear booby traps, reopen damaged entrances and establish defensive perimeters and evacuation routes, according to the report. A smaller group of special operations personnel would then retrieve the nuclear material.<\/p>\n

\"\u05d0\u05e8\u05d9\u05d5\u05ea<\/a>\"\u05d0\u05e8\u05d9\u05d5\u05ea<\/p>\n

Navy SEALs <\/p>\n

(Photo: Shutterstock)<\/p>\n

Joseph Rodgers, deputy director of the Center for Strategic and International Studies, told the newspaper that military action may be the most likely way to remove Iran\u2019s existing nuclear stockpile if negotiations fail.<\/p>\n

\u201cI hate to say it, but I think the most likely way to get rid of Iran\u2019s nuclear material, at least what they currently have, is a military operation because the negotiations aren\u2019t going anywhere fast,\u201d Rodgers said.<\/p>\n

He described the prospective mission as potentially \u201cthe most sophisticated operation in military history,\u201d citing the logistical demands of operating inside hostile territory while securing several sensitive locations.<\/p>\n

The forces involved could include Navy SEALs, Army Rangers and specialists from the Army\u2019s 21st Ordnance Company, according to The High Side, an independent publication cited by the Post. The ordnance unit would reportedly handle and transport enriched uranium from facilities including Fordo and Isfahan.<\/p>\n

The International Atomic Energy Agency reported in 2025 that Iran possessed more than 20,000 pounds of enriched uranium, according to the Post.<\/p>\n

Any ground operation would require U.S. forces to establish secure perimeters around the targeted facilities and protect convoy routes leading to an airstrip or extraction point, Rodgers said. Engineering crews could also be required to excavate entrances damaged in earlier strikes while other troops defended the sites from Iranian forces.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou need to create a secure perimeter around all of the sites that you\u2019re trying to go in and grab the material from,\u201d Rodgers said. \u201cThat would require ground forces to secure a perimeter and then create a secure convoy route to the airstrip.\u201d<\/p>\n

Richard Goldberg, who served on the National Security Council during President Donald Trump\u2019s first administration, said the duration of such a mission would be a central concern.<\/p>\n

\u201cSo how long can you sustain that and still be able to exfiltrate all of your forces?\u201d Goldberg told the Post.<\/p>\n

The mission would also require U.S. forces to control an air corridor long enough to move personnel and nuclear material to a secure location.<\/p>\n

\"\u05d4\u05e8<\/a>\"\u05d4\u05e8<\/p>\n

Pickaxe Mountain <\/p>\n

(Photo: Vantor\/Handout via REUTERS )<\/p>\n

Iran has reportedly reinforced the Isfahan nuclear complex in anticipation of a possible raid. Goldberg said there had been reports of additional defenses, booby traps and security forces around the facility.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere is no element of surprise at the moment,\u201d he said. \u201cThe targets are fixed. We know where they are. The Iranians know where they are.\u201d<\/p>\n

CNN reported last month that Iran had placed mines and explosives inside tunnels at Isfahan, according to the Post.<\/p>\n

Another possible target is Pickaxe Mountain near Natanz, where Iran has reportedly moved hundreds of centrifuges. Goldberg said a special operations mission there would more likely seek to destroy the underground facility than remove its equipment.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe don\u2019t know how many centrifuges are down there,\u201d he said. \u201cWould they be looking to actually disassemble, destroy, bring them out?\u201d<\/p>\n

Goldberg said troops could infiltrate the site, plant explosives and withdraw if airstrikes alone were not believed capable of collapsing the underground complex.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s a destroy mission,\u201d he said. \u201cIf you were to try to get into the facility, you\u2019d be seeking to collapse the facility.\u201d<\/p>\n

The feasibility of an airstrike would depend on U.S. intelligence about the facilities\u2019 design, structural vulnerabilities and access points, the Post reported.<\/p>\n

Goldberg compared a possible raid on Pickaxe Mountain to a rapid infiltration operation in which troops enter, place explosives and leave before enemy forces can respond.<\/p>\n

\u201cPickaxe Mountain, potentially, could be like the Maduro raid,\u201d he said. \u201cBecause you are infiltrating, you\u2019re setting explosives, and you\u2019re getting out.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The operation could require thousands of troops to secure the sites, clear booby traps, reopen damaged entrances and…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":559191,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[42,43,40,38,41,39],"class_list":["post-559190","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-headlines","tag-headlines","tag-news","tag-top-news","tag-top-stories","tag-topnews","tag-topstories"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/559190","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=559190"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/559190\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/559191"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=559190"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=559190"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=559190"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}