A Syrian site, identified as being in Deir Ezzor, possessed infrastructure consistent with a nuclear reactor, according to a confidential report from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) seen by AFP. The report also states that Syria, under former leader Bashar al-Assad, failed to declare nuclear material, facilities, and activities.
IAEA inspectors visited two sites last month, including the Deir Ezzor location and another site related to nuclear material identified by Syria. The agency confirmed that "the cooling infrastructure which has now been uncovered is consistent with that of a nuclear reactor." The IAEA indicated it would continue to monitor activities at the site as excavation work progresses.
The report detailed that based on the information provided by Syria and the agency's verification activities, "the former Syrian authorities had failed to report nuclear material, facilities and activities." Beyond the "nuclear reactor under construction" at the Deir Ezzor site, the IAEA identified a fuel fabrication plant and a storage location for nuclear fuel, uranium scrap, and waste.
IAEA head Rafael Grossi stated last month in Damascus that inspectors had found several tons of nuclear material in Syria, including approximately 73 tonnes of natural uranium metal, comprising 55 tonnes of fuel rods and the remainder as uranium scrap and waste. Grossi commended Damascus's "courageous decision" to report the previously undisclosed site, which dates back to the Assad era. The IAEA confirmed its previous assessment that the undeclared reactor under construction was a gas-cooled graphite moderated nuclear reactor.
The report noted Syria's "transparency and cooperation with the agency," and that Syria has taken steps to rectify the situation by providing the required nuclear material accounting reports and design information. The Deir Ezzor site, shut down for 18 years, was the subject of a top-secret Israeli air raid in 2007. US officials accused Syria of attempting to build a secret nuclear reactor at the site in 2008, shortly after the Israeli strike. In 2011, the IAEA had previously declared the Syrian site was "very likely" to have been a nuclear reactor, potentially with North Korean assistance.
