IAEA confirms Syria secretly built nuclear reactor under Assad's rule

A confidential IAEA report reviewed by AP and AFP confirms Syria had a nuclear reactor under construction in Deir el-Zor during Bashar al-Assad’s rule, and that Damascus failed to report nuclear material, facilities, or activities. Inspectors visited sites in August and verified cooling infrastructure at Deir el-Zor consistent with a nuclear reactor, along with a fuel fabrication facility and other related locations. The agency noted Syria has cooperated since, providing required material accounting reports and design information for the facilities. Separately, the IAEA verified about 73 tonnes of natural uranium metal at another undeclared Syrian site, now under containment and surveillance. The findings come against a backdrop of past Israeli airstrikes on the Deir el-Zor site in 2007 and longstanding concerns about Syria’s undisclosed nuclear program, with the IAEA continuing to monitor excavation progress and potential civilian nuclear-energy ambitions under new authorities.