Syria was building nuclear reactor in Deir el-Zour under Assad, UN report finds

A UN report revealed on Tuesday that Syria had been building a nuclear reactor in Deir el-Zour under the leadership of the former Syrian president Bashar al-Assad, according to a confidential document obtained by the Associated Press. In August, inspectors from the UN nuclear watchdog organization conducted verification work at various sites across Syria, confirming the existence of the secretive nuclear facility.

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) stated that the former Syrian authorities had not adequately reported their nuclear materials, facilities, and activities as mandated by the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) safeguards agreement. This included the construction of a nuclear reactor in Deir el-Zour, a fuel fabrication plant, and another facility for fuel storage during Assad's regime.

Syria had operated a significant undeclared nuclear program during Assad's rule, which reportedly included a North Korean-built nuclear reactor in eastern Deir el-Zour province. After Assad's removal, the new Syrian government agreed to allow IAEA inspectors access to these former nuclear sites. However, the Deir el-Zour site remained unknown until its destruction by Israeli airstrikes in 2007, after which Syria promptly demolished it and provided minimal responses to IAEA inquiries.

Israel is reported to possess its own undeclared atomic weapons program, making it the sole country in the Middle East with nuclear bombs; it neither confirms nor denies the existence of such weapons. The IAEA conducted sampling at the site in 2024 and discovered uranium particles, prompting a recent report by the agency. The newly elected Syrian authorities have shown interest in developing a civilian nuclear energy program and have pledged to handle any discovered nuclear material within Syria's control, subject to international safeguards.

IAEA inspectors recently visited the Deir el-Zour site on August 29 to assess the progress of excavation work. They confirmed that the uncovered cooling infrastructure is consistent with that of a nuclear reactor. According to the confidential report, three locations were functionally linked to the Deir el-Zour site. One site dealt with conversion and/or fuel fabrication activities, another was designated for temporary storage of construction materials, and a third served as temporary storage for materials being transferred to or from the site, as well as for planned reprocessing activities.

On August 17, Syria informed the IAEA of the existence of another undeclared site in the country, inviting the agency to cooperate in inspecting and verifying the site and any nuclear material that might be present. The IAEA reported that the site contained "natural uranium metal in the form of fuel rods with cladding." They verified the material and confirmed the presence of approximately 73 tonnes of natural uranium metal, all of which is currently under the agency's containment and surveillance measures.