The United Nations’ nuclear watchdog detected uranium particles at a remote site in Syria that was bombed by Israel in 2007, reviving questions about whether the destroyed facility once housed a secret nuclear reactor.
According to a confidential report shared with member states, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) found a “significant number of natural uranium particles” during recent inspections at one of three locations linked to the Deir al-Zor complex.
The uranium was described as “anthropogenic,” meaning it had been chemically processed but not enriched, which indicates a human-made origin.
Syria’s current interim government, which came to power after the ouster of Bashar al-Assad in 2024, told inspectors it had no information that could explain the discovery.
A Secret Reactor Bombed by Israel
The site in question, located near Deir al-Zor in eastern Syria, was destroyed in September 2007 during a covert Israeli air raid known as Operation Orchard. The mission involved Israeli fighter jets crossing into Syrian airspace undetected, striking the facility and withdrawing before Damascus could respond.
Israel later revealed that its intelligence services had concluded the facility was a plutonium reactor under construction with assistance from North Korea. At the time, Israel kept the strike secret to avoid escalation. Syria denied it was developing nuclear capabilities and insisted the facility was a military installation.
However, analysts noted that the building closely resembled North Korea’s Yongbyon reactor in size and design, reinforcing suspicions that Damascus had been pursuing a clandestine nuclear program.
Years of Denials and Delays
The IAEA began investigating the Deir al-Zor site in 2008, but inspectors faced delays and restrictions. By 2011, the agency concluded it was “very likely” the destroyed facility had been an undeclared nuclear reactor that Syria should have reported under its obligations as a signatory of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT).
Despite that assessment, the Assad government denied the allegations and refused to cooperate fully with investigators. For more than a decade, the inquiry remained stalled as Syria’s civil war unfolded and the site itself was bulldozed and camouflaged.
New Leadership, New Cooperation
The fall of Assad in late 2024 marked a turning point in Syria’s cooperation with the IAEA. The new authorities in Damascus granted inspectors access to three locations believed to be linked to the destroyed site. Environmental samples taken in 2024 and again in June 2025 revealed the presence of processed uranium particles at one location.
During a June 2025 visit to Damascus, IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi said Syrian officials had pledged “full transparency” in addressing unresolved questions about the country’s nuclear past. Inspectors were permitted to conduct further sampling and are expected to continue their work in the months ahead.
Next Steps in the Investigation
The IAEA said it will return to the Deir al-Zor site, review Syrian documentation and interview personnel who may have been involved in its construction and operation. Any confirmation that the facility was an undeclared reactor would represent a violation of Syria’s NPT commitments.
For now, the agency is focused on analyzing the latest samples and determining whether the uranium traces indicate past nuclear activities or can be explained by other processes.
The outcome of this investigation will be critical in resolving one of the IAEA’s longest-running cases and in clarifying whether Syria had once been on the path to developing nuclear weapons capability.
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