The UN nuclear monitoring body has discovered uranium particles in Syria during its probe of a facility Israel demolished in 2007, which the organization has long suspected was an undeclared nuclear reactor, according to a report distributed to member nations Monday, Reuters reported.
Former Syrian dictator Bashar Assad's administration claimed the Deir al-Zor location containing the structure served as a standard military installation. The International Atomic Energy Agency determined in 2011 that the facility was "very likely" an undeclared reactor constructed covertly that Damascus was required to report to the watchdog.
The organization has worked since that time to reach a final determination, and during intensified efforts last year, managed to collect environmental specimens from three undisclosed sites "that were allegedly functionally related" to Deir al-Zor, according to the confidential document reviewed by Reuters.
The watchdog discovered "a significant number of natural uranium particles in samples taken at one of the three locations. The analysis of these particles indicated that the uranium is of anthropogenic origin, i.e., that it was produced as a result of chemical processing," the document stated. "Natural uranium" refers to uranium that has not been enriched. According to Reuters, the document reached no determination regarding the significance of the discovered traces.
"The current Syrian authorities indicated that they had no information that might explain the presence of such uranium particles," the document stated, noting that the Islamist-controlled administration provided the IAEA renewed access to the relevant location in June for additional environmental sampling.
During a June meeting between IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi and Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa, "Syria agreed to cooperate with the agency, through full transparency, to address Syria's past nuclear activities," the document indicated.
At the same gathering, Grossi requested Syrian assistance for returning to Deir al-Zor "in the next few months in order to conduct further analysis, access relevant documentation, and to talk to those involved in Syria's past nuclear activities."
The document noted that the IAEA maintains plans to visit Deir al-Zor and will assess results from environmental specimens collected at the additional location.
"Once this process has been completed and the results evaluated, there will be an opportunity to clarify and resolve the outstanding safeguards issues related to Syria's past nuclear activities and to bring the matter to a close," the report concluded.
