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.
38 Articles
38 Articles
In Syria, nuclear material is stored. The Syrian government therefore calls the international inspectors to the country. It is said to be remnants of a secret nuclear program of the Assad regime, which had always denied the construction of a nuclear reactor.
Probable nuclear activities in Syria could not be investigated for a long time. After Assad's fall, movement came into the matter. Now the new government is taking a big step towards the UN nuclear guards.
UN inspectors visit undeclared Syrian nuclear sites for first time
UN inspectors this week visited several undeclared Assad-era Syrian nuclear sites for the first time — including some used to store nuclear material. Why it matters: The inspections by International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Director General Rafael Grossi and his team came after diplomatic efforts by the Trump administration, first reported by Axios, that produced understandings with both Syria and Israel.It marked the first time the IAEA was …
The head of the International Atomic Energy Agency welcomed Damascus' "happy decision" to report this site and stressed that the materials discovered would be placed under "international supervision".
The director of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), Rafael Grossi, said on Tuesday that the organ of the United Nations (UN) found several tons of nuclear material in a place in Syria that had not been declared by the previous government. Do you want to live outside? See interactive guide that gathers information about 36 countries Want to read more news from the World? Follow the channel in WhatsApp In Damascus, Grossi praised the "b…
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