Syria was building a nuclear reactor in Deir el-Zour under Assad, UN reports

VIENNA — Syria was constructing a nuclear reactor in Deir el-Zour under the leadership of ousted former President Bashar Assad, according to a UN report seen Tuesday (Sept 2) by The Associated Press.Inspectors with the UN nuclear watchdog visited several sites in Syria in August and carried out verification work that confirmed the existence of a long-suspected nuclear site, according to the confidential report circulated to member states.Based on this visit, the International Atomic Energy Agency reported that it is “able to establish that the former Syrian authorities had failed to report nuclear material, facilities and activities as required under the NPT Safeguards Agreement”.This information included a nuclear reactor under construction in Deir el-Zour, a fuel fabrication plant and another site used for fuel storage during the rule of Assad.Under Assad, Syria was believed to have operated an extensive undeclared nuclear programme that included a nuclear reactor built by North Korea in eastern Deir el-Zour province. Following Assad’s ouster, the new government agreed to give IAEA inspectors access to suspected former nuclear sites.

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