the news now
This is a new development in a story we have covered before · earlier coverage

IAEA Discovers Tons of Nuclear Material at Undeclared Site in Syria

morning · · thread: Syria and Russia Reach Agreement on Future of Military Bases

7 sources across 7 countries · 1 of them is linked to a state

Who reported this

  • France 24 France · Centre · Public · France Medias Monde (French state holding)
  • Der Spiegel Germany · Centre-left · ~50% staff-owned
  • Haaretz Israel · Left · Schocken family and M. DuMont Schauberg
  • Dawn Pakistan · Centre-left · Pakistan Herald Publications (Haroon family)
  • Al Jazeera Qatar · Centre-left · State-affiliated · Qatari government funded
  • The Korea Herald South Korea · Centre-right · Herald Corporation (Yeongpoong Group)
  • Al-Monitor United States · Centre · Jamal Daniel

What the colours mean

  • Left
  • Centre-left
  • Centre
  • Centre-right
  • Right
  • A hatched block means the outlet is affiliated with, or controlled by, a state.

Political lean describes where an outlet sits within the politics of its own country. It is never a position on a single global scale.

Political lean is comparable inside one country and not across them, which is why the bar groups by country first. Publicly funded broadcasters are not marked as state-linked.

The owner of each outlet is listed as a matter of record, not as a judgement about the outlet.

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has discovered several tons of nuclear material at a previously undeclared site in Syria. IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi announced the find on Tuesday during a press conference in Damascus, stating that the material dates back to the regime of ousted leader Bashar al-Assad. Grossi noted that while the material could be put to bad use, it will now be placed under international safeguards. Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani stated that the Syrian government reported the site to the agency of its own free will on July 17. He added that technical assessments indicate the materials do not pose a risk and will remain in Syrian national custody while subject to IAEA monitoring.

Inspectors visited two locations: the newly identified site and a location in Deir Ezzor. Grossi stated that the discovery validates the IAEA's long standing suspicion that Syria had been secretly building a nuclear reactor. The Deir Ezzor site, also known as Al-Kibar, was the target of a top secret Israeli air raid in 2007. The IAEA had previously declared in 2011 that the site was very likely a nuclear reactor, potentially built with North Korean assistance. Syrian and IAEA experts are now working together to ensure the safe storage of the materials.

Reports from Axios, cited by several outlets, suggest that the IAEA's visit followed an agreement between Washington and the agency to remove nuclear material from a clandestine location referred to as Site 99. According to these reports, Israel had been closely monitoring this site and had previously threatened to bomb it.

How each side framed it

Left
This outlet focused on Syria's assertion of its right to use nuclear energy for civilian and peaceful purposes.
Centre-left
These outlets emphasized the discovery as part of the broader process of uncovering the legacy of the Assad dictatorship.
Centre
These outlets focused on the factual discovery and the official statements from the IAEA and Syrian government.
Centre-right
This outlet highlighted the IAEA's role as a UN watchdog and the specific details of the reporting process.

Sources

100% of the statements in this article were traced back to the source articles listed above.