Syria’s government is allowing UN nuclear inspectors to investigate the suspected secret nuclear programme pursued under former ruler Bashar al-Assad.
Syria informed the Vienna-based International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) in July about large quantities of nuclear material and allowed an initial inspection, according to a joint statement by Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani and IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi during Grossi’s visit to Syria.
“We are talking about a few tons of nuclear material that could be put to bad use,” Grossi said.
US news outlet Axios reported last week that the material included yellowcake, a mildly radioactive uranium concentrate that can be processed into nuclear reactor fuel, among other uses.
The IAEA has not provided details on the material.
Israel attacked and destroyed a suspected Syrian nuclear reactor in 2007 in an effort to prevent the country from using the facility to produce nuclear weapons.
In a 2011 investigation, the IAEA concluded that the site had housed a secret nuclear reactor with similarities to a reactor in nuclear-armed North Korea.
However, resistance from the al-Assad government and Syria’s civil war prevented UN inspectors from fully investigating the suspected secret nuclear activities on the ground.
The investigation has gained new momentum since al-Assad was ousted in December 2024.
During his visit to Syria, Grossi inspected the former reactor site as well as another location linked to the nuclear material, according to the statement.
Syria and the IAEA, the UN’s nuclear watchdog, agreed on concrete steps to resolve outstanding questions surrounding the country’s past nuclear activities, al-Shaibani and Grossi said.