{"slug": "un-report-finds-syria-was-building-a-nuclear-reactor-in-deir-el-zour-under-assad", "title": "UN report finds Syria was building a nuclear reactor in Deir el-Zour under former President Assad", "summary": "The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) reported Tuesday that Syria failed to declare nuclear material, facilities, and activities under the NPT Safeguards Agreement, including a nuclear reactor under construction in Deir el-Zour, a fuel fabrication plant, and a fuel storage site during the rule of former President Bashar Assad. IAEA inspectors visited Syria in August, confirming that cooling infrastructure at Deir el-Zour is consistent with a nuclear reactor, and verified approximately 73 tonnes of natural uranium metal at a newly declared site.", "body_md": "**Getting your**\n\n[Trinity Audio](//trinityaudio.ai)player ready...**By STEPHANIE LIECHTENSTEIN**\n\nVIENNA (AP) — Inspectors with the U.N. nuclear watchdog visited several sites in [Syria](https://apnews.com/hub/syria) in August and carried out verification work, according to a confidential report circulated to member states and seen Tuesday by The Associated Press.\n\nBased on this visit, the [International Atomic Energy Agency](https://apnews.com/hub/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.”\n\nThis information included a nuclear reactor under construction in [Deir el-Zour](https://apnews.com/article/syria-nuclear-iaea-uranium-3d1194b3b76d90a00f1b9f3215b4595d), a fuel fabrication plant and another site used for fuel storage during the rule of former [President Bashar Assad](https://apnews.com/article/syria-bashar-assad-war-1468a97ff95bb782f5933856d99c9a8d).\n\nUnder Assad, Syria was believed to have operated an extensive undeclared nuclear program that included a nuclear reactor built by North Korea in eastern Deir el-Zour province.\n\nThe site in Deir el-Zour only became public knowledge after [Israel launched airstrikes in 2007](https://apnews.com/article/a9d1182260194328b72f112a1be7f77a) that destroyed the facility. Syria later leveled the site and never responded fully to the IAEA’s questions about it.\n\nThe IAEA took samples at the site in 2024 and reported last year that they contained uranium particles.\n\nThe IAEA reported on Tuesday that its inspectors visited the Deir el-Zour site on Aug. 29 “to monitor progress on the excavation work.”\n\n“Based on observations made at the location, the Agency confirms that the cooling infrastructure which has now been uncovered is consistent with that of a nuclear reactor.”\n\nIn its confidential report on Tuesday, the IAEA said that three locations were “functionally related” to the Deir el-Zour site. One was related to “conversion and/or fuel fabrication activities,” another was for “temporary storage of construction material,” and another was for the “temporary storage of construction materials being transferred to/from” the site, as well as for “planned reprocessing activities.”\n\nDuring the visit to Syria, IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi and a team of senior inspectors also visited a previously undeclared site in the country.\n\nSyria notified the agency of the site’s existence in a July 17 letter and invited the IAEA “to cooperate with the Syrian authorities in the inspection and verification of the site and of any nuclear material to be potentially found.”\n\nThe IAEA said in its report that this new site contained “natural uranium metal in the form of fuel rods with cladding.” The agency verified the material and confirmed “the presence of around 73 tonnes of natural uranium metal.” The agency reported that “all of this nuclear material is currently subject to Agency containment and surveillance measures.”\n\n*The Associated Press receives financial support from multiple private foundations. AP is solely responsible for all content. Find AP’s standards for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas at AP.org.*", "url": "https://wpnews.pro/news/un-report-finds-syria-was-building-a-nuclear-reactor-in-deir-el-zour-under-assad", "canonical_source": "https://www.ocregister.com/2026/09/01/syria-nuclear-reactor/", "published_at": "2026-09-01 18:02:04+00:00", "updated_at": "2026-09-01 18:22:03.433987+00:00", "lang": "en", "topics": ["ai-policy"], "entities": ["International Atomic Energy Agency", "Syria", "Deir el-Zour", "Bashar Assad", "Rafael Grossi", "Israel"], "alternates": {"html": "https://wpnews.pro/news/un-report-finds-syria-was-building-a-nuclear-reactor-in-deir-el-zour-under-assad", "markdown": "https://wpnews.pro/news/un-report-finds-syria-was-building-a-nuclear-reactor-in-deir-el-zour-under-assad.md", "text": "https://wpnews.pro/news/un-report-finds-syria-was-building-a-nuclear-reactor-in-deir-el-zour-under-assad.txt", "jsonld": "https://wpnews.pro/news/un-report-finds-syria-was-building-a-nuclear-reactor-in-deir-el-zour-under-assad.jsonld"}}