UN Watchdog Excavates Suspected Syrian Nuclear Site as Damascus Pledges Safeguards
Inspectors are examining a few tons of nuclear material and other remnants, with Syria saying the material will stay under international safeguards.
- On Tuesday, Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani announced that nuclear material discovered at a clandestine site will remain under Syrian control for civilian purposes, reversing previous expectations that the IAEA would remove it.
- Inspectors with the IAEA began excavating at Site 99, a facility linked to the nuclear program of Syrian President Bashar Assad, after the agency's chief confirmed the site's clandestine nature on Thursday.
- Material at the facility includes yellowcake and debris from the bombed Kibar reactor, which experts note could be used for a "dirty bomb" rather than nuclear weapons, according to reports from Israel and the United States.
- During a Damascus press conference, IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi confirmed that inspectors discovered another site with nuclear material, stressing that Syria's cooperation holds "enormous importance" for international safeguards.
- Al-Shaibani condemned reported Israeli airstrikes while pledging to keep materials subject to agency safeguards, reflecting ongoing regional tensions as the new government seeks to manage the former regime's legacy.
74 Articles
74 Articles
Several tons of nuclear material have been found in Syria. These are remnants of former President Assad's secret atomic program. The international nuclear watchdog IAEA has announced this. Multiple sites are being excavated in cooperation with the current Syrian government. IAEA inspectors have also been granted permission to visit suspected sites of the nuclear program. At an unnamed location "outside Damascus," several tons of natural uranium…
Argentine Rafael Grossi revealed the finding after an inspection by the UN agency; the new Syrian authorities attributed the material to Bashar al-Assad’s regime and claimed that “it does not represent any risk”
The IAEA and the Syrian authorities discovered "a few tons of nuclear material" at an "undeclared" site, "the legacy of the former regime".
Damascus has the right to use these materials for civilian and peaceful purposes and has been emphasized in the Syrian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
The International Atomic Energy Agency and the Syrian authorities have announced the discovery of several tons of nuclear material at an undeclared site of the former Syrian regime.
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