'World War III is inevitable': Political commentator Carlson claims Netanyahu pressing Trump for nuclear strike on Iran
Conservative political commentator Tucker Carlson claimed that the Trump administration could launch a nuclear strike on Iran within days, alleging that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is pressuring US President Donald Trump to authorise an attack on a suspected nuclear site in central Iran.
In a lengthy post on X late Sunday, Carlson identified the potential target as Pickaxe Mountain, where Israeli intelligence allegedly believes Iran has resumed its nuclear enrichment programme, according to a report by Daily Sabah on Tuesday.
Warning of the consequences of a nuclear attack, Carlson wrote: “After the first nuclear strike, World War Three is inevitable. That war would be short and final.”
Carlson, a former Fox News host whose programme Tucker Carlson Tonight aired from 2016 to 2023, now runs an independent political show on X, where he regularly comments on US foreign policy and international affairs.
He claimed that conventional US weapons could not penetrate the estimated 91.44 metres (300 feet) of solid granite shielding underground tunnels at the site, leaving a nuclear strike as the only military option.
“Bibi (Netanyahu) calls Trump about it every day,” Carlson quoted an unnamed informed observer as saying.
Carlson argued that Netanyahu's political survival was driving his push for further military action. He claimed the Israeli prime minister needed Trump's intervention to secure a 61-seat majority in the Knesset following the latest election results, warning that otherwise he could lose power and face investigations and possible imprisonment.
He also alleged that Netanyahu had been pressing senior US officials, including Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth and US Central Command chief Adm Brad Cooper, to resume major combat operations.
Carlson further claimed that Secretary of State Marco Rubio and CIA Director John Ratcliffe were following Netanyahu's lead. He also said former President Barack Obama had opposed the Iran peace agreement being drafted in Doha.
Regional escalation fears
Carlson said US allies in the Middle East were increasingly concerned about a return to fighting. He claimed Netanyahu secretly travelled to Abu Dhabi on September 27 to persuade the United Arab Emirates to support a final attack on Iran, but Emirati officials refused.
Warning of the economic consequences, Carlson said eight months of conflict had severely affected Gulf economies, as well as global energy and fertiliser markets. He claimed that 11 of the world's approximately 850 oil supertankers were badly damaged in the Strait of Hormuz in October alone.
He also warned that a nuclear explosion at Pickaxe Mountain could contaminate the Gulf and threaten the water supply of around 100 million people.
Carlson argued that a US nuclear strike could establish a dangerous precedent, potentially encouraging Russia to use nuclear weapons against Ukraine, reigniting nuclear tensions between India and Pakistan, and prompting North Korea to attack Seoul.
He further alleged that the Trump administration had quietly revised US nuclear doctrine since February to make the first use of so-called “battlefield nukes” easier and more likely.
Vance, Witkoff urge diplomacy
Carlson said Trump could decide by November 7 whether to authorise the use of nuclear weapons, adding that Vice President JD Vance and special envoy Steve Witkoff were urging him to pursue a diplomatic agreement with Tehran.
Although acknowledging that negotiations would be difficult, Carlson said people who had spoken with Iranian decision-makers believed there was a consensus that further conflict would benefit no one and that an agreement was worth pursuing.
He concluded by warning that the consequences of a nuclear strike would extend far beyond Iran, arguing that the international public had been excluded from decisions that could threaten millions of lives.
“Now would be the time for them to speak up,” Carlson wrote.
'Within 10 minutes'
Carlson's claims follow Trump's remarks to reporters at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida on Saturday that one or two Iranian nuclear facilities remained potential targets and that the US could strike them within 10 minutes.
Trump specifically mentioned Pickaxe Mountain, saying he had military plans for the area, but did not indicate that a nuclear strike had been authorised.
“You probably could look at Pickaxe Mountain, you have to take care of that. We can do that all very quickly,” he said.
In an October 16 interview with Newsmax, Trump explicitly ruled out using nuclear weapons against Iran.
Separately, Axios reported that Trump and Netanyahu held a tense phone call on Saturday, citing Israeli and US sources. According to the report, Netanyahu was pushing for renewed military action immediately after Tuesday's US midterm elections, while Trump preferred to allow diplomatic negotiations to continue.
A White House official said the administration did not comment on sensitive military plans, adding that Trump was keeping all options open to prevent Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon.
Rubio has also said no final decision had been made on resuming strikes.
Iran, meanwhile, denies any nuclear activity at the Pickaxe Mountain complex. Its supreme leader has warned Washington and Tel Aviv against launching further attacks.