Nuclear: 2.5 tons of uranium disappeared from Libya site, says IAEA
Yellow cake represents an intermediate step in the process of making nuclear fuel from uranium ore. © Energy Fuels Inc./Flickr Nuclear Regulatory Commission/CC BY 2.0
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The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) reported Wednesday (March 16th) the disappearance of about 2.5 tons of natural uranium from a site in Libya, without giving further details of the site where the material should have been.
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During a visit on Tuesday, inspectors from the UN body "discovered that ten containers with about 2.5 tons of natural uranium in the form of uranium concentrate ('yellow cake') were not present where they had been declared by the authorities," Director-General Rafael Grossi wrote in a report to member states.
The IAEA specifies that it will conduct "additional" verifications to "clarify the circumstances of the disappearance of this nuclear material and its current location". No details are given on the site in question.
Libya abandoned its nuclear weapons development program in 2003 under former leader Muammar Gaddafi.
Since its fall in 2011 after 42 years of dictatorship, the country has been mired in a major political crisis, with rival powers based in the east and west, a myriad of militias, mercenaries scattered throughout the country, against a backdrop of foreign interference.
Two governments are vying for power: one installed in Tripoli (West) and recognized by the UN, the other supported by the strongman of eastern Libya, Marshal Khalifa Haftar.
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(With AFP
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- Libya
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