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Syria and the Iranian path By Yossi Melman Tags: Iran, Israel News, Syria  Click here for more articles by Yossi Melman The discovery of enriched uranium at the Syrian military site that Israel bombed last year may be the first step toward revealing Syria's smoking gun. This week, International Atomic Energy Agency Director Mohamed ElBaradei will submit a report to the organization's Board of Governors on Syria's nuclear program. The report will state that IAEA inspectors discovered traces of enriched uranium at the site on the bank of the Euphrates River. This will be ElBaradei's first written report on the Syrian issue, and the first time since the bombing that a non-American, non-Israeli official has expressed suspicions that the bombed site was a nuclear reactor. Until now, only the CIA claimed the structure was a nuclear reactor in the final stages of construction, but even it spoke cautiously, noting that radioactive material had yet to be introduced to the site. Advertisement The IAEA report not only strengthens claims by the American and Israeli intelligence community, it even goes beyond them. Since the bombing, the Syrians have made every effort to deny, confuse and conceal the nature of the site. At first they claimed Israeli planes entered their airspace but were repelled. Then they said the planes dropped a few bombs, but caused no damage. Later, Syrian President Bashar Assad confirmed that the planes had bombed a military building, but denied vehemently that the location contained a nuclear reactor. North Korea, which built the facility, echoed Assad's sentiments. Photographs released by U.S. intelligence show clearly that the structures that survived the bombing were quickly cleared away, and vast amounts of soil were removed from the area, most likely to remove traces of radioactivity. Furthermore, Syria found various ways to block IAEA inspectors from the site. In June, nine months after the bombing, Damascus finally allowed inspectors to enter. They took samples of earth, rocks, air, water and plants, and transferred them to IAEA laboratories in Austria. The results that emerged were complicated and ambiguous, and experts struggled to come to definitive conclusions. For a while it seemed as if Syria's efforts to hide the circumstances of the bombing were succeeding. Lately, however, experts have drawn clear results - traces of man-made uranium were identified at the site. The experts were unable to determine the precise source of the radioactive material, but have cited three options. The first is that small amounts of radioactive material entered the site during its construction, which conflicts with U.S. intelligence's preliminary findings. The second option is that Syrian or foreign nuclear experts came into contact with radioactive material at their workplace and unintentionally left it behind at the facility. A final option is that equipment previously used to enrich uranium was installed at the site. The discovery of uranium now reinforces the onus on the Assad regime, which will be forced to provide comprehensive explanations. The strange pronouncements made last week by Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Moallem - that the Israeli planes dropped bombs bearing radioactive material - can hardly be considered such an explanation. The IAEA will demand that Syria allow its officials to speak with the experts who discovered the radioactive material or equipment at the site. For several weeks Damascus has refused to allow additional visits from IAEA inspectors, and if it persists, suspicions will heighten that it has something to hide. Pushing Syria into the corner is reminiscent of what happened to Iran. Tehran also denied at first that it had built hidden nuclear facilities (such as the uranium enrichment facility in Natanz, the centrifuge factory in Tehran and the reactor in Arak.) When the truth finally emerged, Iran was forced to admit the existence of the sites, but continued to deny that they were being used for nuclear activity. As it was confronted with ever more facts, it continued weaving its web of lies, until the IAEA finally labeled it a non-compliant country that had violated its obligations under the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, and the UN Security Council imposed sanctions on it. Syria is still far from that point, but the discovery of uranium at the bombed site could be a turning point. It could be the first step toward finding the smoking gun that incriminates Damascus in the international community, and strengthens Israel's claim that its own operation was necessary and justified to prevent Syria from developing a nuclear weapon. Bookmark to del.icio.us   Venezuela's Jews Jewish community head: 'Chavez's government endorses anti-Semitism.' Breakthrough start-up WATCH: Israeli company invents radiation-free lung imaging system.   1.   Get your story straight 08:17  |  Rowan Berkeley 16/11/08   2.   i wanted to be first to slag israel on this one... 09:03  |  strange 16/11/08   3.   Damascus, Dimona, and D.C. 09:26  |  Jim 16/11/08   4.   #3, Jim 09:42  |  Cipora Julianna Kohn 16/11/08   5.   As long as Israel has a secret nuclear weapons program... 09:51  |  Natallie Durson 16/11/08   6.   who can give the real information?? in this case 09:58  |  michel 16/11/08   7.   Two great stonking lies in one sentence from Yossi Melman 10:21  |  Clickfool 16/11/08   8.   This sentence in the article makes no sense 10:42  |  Rowan Berkeley 16/11/08   9.   You "almost" said it Jimbo #3 10:46  |  Ari ben Yisrael 16/11/08   10.   Melman`s tricky sentence decoded 11:14  |  Rowan Berkeley 16/11/08   11.   Jim No.3 11:23  |  Peter Williams 16/11/08   12.   #4 Cipora Julinna Kohn 11:26  |  Jim 16/11/08   13.   #5 Natalie Durson 11:59  |  Jim 16/11/08   14.   For Rowan Berkeley # 8 12:04  |  Clickfool 16/11/08   15.   A "SMOKING GUN" LIKE WHAT THEY "FOUND" IN IRAQ? 12:20  |  indrajaya 16/11/08   16.   #11 Peter Williams Don`t be a dummy 12:20  |  Jim 16/11/08   17.   # 13, JIM 13:14  |  indrajaya 16/11/08   18.   Why the uncertainties and doubts? 13:16  |  Axel 16/11/08   19.   Jim have another whiskey 13:39  |  Peter Williams 16/11/08   20.   Axel 13:46  |  Peter Williams 16/11/08   21.   Well, it is a brave call, I`ll give Melman that... 13:52  |  Johnboy 16/11/08   22.   # 21, JOHNBOY 14:01  |  indrajaya 16/11/08   23.   "someone who breaks a NNPT" 14:03  |  Rowan Berkeley 16/11/08   24.   BERKLEY if you read the whole article rather than select bits. 14:35  |  PETER SM 16/11/08   25.   JOHNBOY As brave as there was no bombing of the site?? 14:51  |  PETER SM 16/11/08   26.   # 20 peter 16:08  |  Axel 16/11/08   27.   even if it was a reactor 16:24  |  chris 16/11/08   28.   Johnboy,so enriched uranium is not man made uranium? 16:25  |  Rowan 16/11/08   29.   If Israel has nukes Muslims will too! Ban all of them! 16:39  |  American 16/11/08   30.   Explain the contradiction, peter 17:39  |  Axel 16/11/08   31.   He said/She said - wait for the report 17:41  |  zaz 16/11/08   32.   could it be that none of us know the truth but.. 18:33  |  strange 16/11/08   33.   Guilty As Hell 18:46  |  DTM 16/11/08   34.   #28 man-made uranium 19:26  |  chris 16/11/08   35.   rowan #28 i guess johnnyboy thinks "enriched uranium" grows on 19:53  |  terrornator 16/11/08   36.   axel,they built the whole nuclear site with the same satellite 20:01  |  terrornator 16/11/08   37.   indrajaya,if iraq didn`t have any WMD`s what was it they used on 20:06  |  terrornator 16/11/08   38.   Israel will one day pay the price 20:13  |  BIG 16/11/08   39.   Buyer interest is there, but the seller? 20:24  |  Eric Wilson 16/11/08   40.   the writer yossi seems convinced that syria was building 20:37  |  a nuke site 16/11/08   41.   They were only following Mullah`s orders 20:51  |  Yuri 16/11/08   42.   For Rowan # 28 21:45  |  Clickfool 16/11/08   43.   For DTM # 33 21:56  |  Clickfool 16/11/08   44.   chris from munich 22:02  |  Rowan 16/11/08   45.   To Clickfool #7 22:23  |  Comforti 16/11/08   46.   #44 Rowan 22:31  |  chris 16/11/08   47.   #44 Rowan (continued) 22:35  |  chris 16/11/08   48.   The claim by the US 22:58  |  Mark Lincoln 16/11/08   49.   Axel 26 23:07  |  Peter Williams 16/11/08   50.   Yossi Melman doesn`t read Haaretz? 23:11  |  Mark Lincoln 16/11/08   51.   "AMERICAN" there is an Islamic bomb already.In Islamic Pakistan 23:16  |  PETER SM 16/11/08   52.   Axel, contradiction explained 23:23  |  Peter Williams 16/11/08   53.   # 36 terrorblabla 23:27  |  Axel 16/11/08   54.   From the UK nuclear power industry 23:30  |  Mark Lincoln 16/11/08   55.   # 48 peter 23:57  |  Axel 16/11/08   56.   The common thread in all the leaks 23:57  |  Mark Lincoln 16/11/08   57.   Peter Sm and nukes 00:12  |  truth 17/11/08   58.   Peter SM - I remember 00:22  |  Mark Lincoln 17/11/08   59.   Clickfool 43 00:25  |  DTM 17/11/08   60.   Peter Williams 00:29  |  Mark Lincoln 17/11/08   61.   Axel, photint satellites don`t `hover` 00:34  |  Mark Lincoln 17/11/08   62.   a nuke site 00:47  |  Mark Lincoln 17/11/08   63.   #28 Rohan, who has no idea what he is talking about. 01:33  |  Johnboy 17/11/08   64.   axel,wise up a little,they let them get to the point of near 01:35  |  terrornator 17/11/08   65.   Axel 01:41  |  Peter Williams 17/11/08   66.   #35 Two hollow heads banging together.... 01:46  |  Johnboy 17/11/08   67.   Mark L. apperently the biggest threat to US is a nuclear dev 01:46  |  PETER SM 17/11/08   68.   Cipora - Study the FAS Pakistan Time Line 01:48  |  Mark Lincoln 17/11/08   69.   TRUTH Seeing that you lot outnumber Israel by at least a billion. 01:49  |  PETER SM 17/11/08   70.   Mark Lincoln can`t see the woods for the trees 02:06  |  Peter Williams 17/11/08   71.   Sanctions don`t work 02:09  |  Frank 17/11/08   72.   Zionist conspiricy 02:39  |  Muskens 17/11/08   73.   Mark Lincoln consider this 03:13  |  Peter Williams 17/11/08   74.   yet we see lies exposing themselves clearly 03:24  |  VIPER 17/11/08   75.   Clearly not Peter SM 04:53  |  Mark Lincoln 17/11/08   76.   Peter Williams - intel 04:58  |  Mark Lincoln 17/11/08   77.   Peter Williams - to continue 05:05  |  Mark Lincoln 17/11/08   78.   Muskens - what? 05:11  |  Mark Lincoln 17/11/08   79.   Muskens - continued 05:17  |  Mark Lincoln 17/11/08   80.   Peter Williams 05:23  |  Mark Lincoln 17/11/08   81.   Thank you Peter Williams 05:29  |  Mark Lincoln 17/11/08   82.   From the begining 05:43  |  Mark Lincoln 17/11/08   83.   Syria and Iran path 05:53  |  Earl 17/11/08   84.   Mark L there is no question Al Qeida has been exploring nuclear 06:39  |  PETER SM 17/11/08   85.   #45 comforti is correct 06:52  |  wiseUP 17/11/08   86.   Syria`s chemical Ali ..... selling the news 07:25  |  allang 17/11/08   87.   JOHNBOY "IAEA inspectors discovered traces of enriched uranium" 08:22  |  PETER SM 17/11/08   88.   Mark Lincoln 2 in 1 10:29  |  Peter Williams 17/11/08   89.   #87 One more time for slow ol` PETER SM 10:31  |  Johnboy 17/11/08   90.   Syria and Saddam? 12:26  |  Motic 17/11/08   91.   Assad regime will be forced to provide comprehensive explanation 17:14  |  Rob 17/11/08

Read & React Obama: Time for Palestinians, Israel to resume peace talks Responses: 44 Miri Eisin: Is only the Israeli narrative 'the truth' and all the others wrong? Responses: 19 Bradley Burston: The Gaza War as reality television Responses: 17 EU aid chief: Hamas 'enormously responsible' for Gaza war Responses: 57 Summit on Holocaust: Gaza war legitimized equating Jews with Nazis Responses: 45 More Headlines 10:38 Bomb explodes near IDF patrol along Gaza border 10:27 Israel stymies French push to lift European boycott of Hamas 10:24 Sarkozy to update Shalit's father on latest efforts to free son 07:57 Obama: Time for Palestinians, Israel to resume peace talks 03:31 ANALYSIS / Recognizing that Israel's effort to topple Hamas has failed 08:43 Kadima kicks off campaign with threat to assassinate Hamas chiefs 02:20 Head of right-wing think tank: Settlements must be evacuated 09:34 After 60 years, Jewish siblings separated in Holocaust reunited 10:41 Jimmy Carter: Israel will face 'catastrophe' without Palestinian state 09:05 Police say case against Lieberman boosted by newly revealed documents 09:11 Barak seeking to 'Putinize' image to attract Russian vote 09:06 Summit on Holocaust: Gaza war legitimized equating Jews with Nazis 22:07 'In Venezuela, anti-Semitism is endorsed by the government' 08:10 Israel Eurovision singers skip benefit concert for Gaza civilians, citing political tug-of-war 04:15 Gideon Levy / My Shabbat dinner with Rabbi Avraham Ravitz 08:13 Suspect in Tel Aviv pedophile case ran child prostitution ring 08:54 Vatican: Comments by bishop who denied Holocaust unacceptable Previous Editions Select Day 26 jan 25 jan 23 jan 22 jan 21 jan 20 jan 19 jan 18 jan 16 jan 15 jan 14 jan 13 jan

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