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International Atomic Energy Agency Mohammed ElBaradei speaking during a celebration ceremony at Vienna's UN headquarters on Friday. (Reuters)
Last update - 10:33 26/04/2008
IAEA slams Israel for bombing alleged nuclear reactor in Syria
By Yossi Melman, Haaretz Correspondent and The Associated Press
Tags: Israel, Syria, IAEA 

The United Nations nuclear monitoring agency on Friday slammed Israel for an Israel Air Forces strike last September on an alleged nuclear reactor in Syria.

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) said "the unilateral use of force by Israel as undermining the due process of verification that is at the heart of the nonproliferation regime," in a statement released Friday.

IAEA Chief Mohammed ElBaradei said that by deciding to unilaterally bomb the site on September 6, 2007, Israel destroyed evidence that could have supported or refuted the claims the site was in fact a nuclear facility.
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ElBaradei also criticized the U.S. on Friday for not giving his organization intelligence information sooner on what Washington says was a nuclear reactor in Syria being built secretly by North Korea.

"The director general deplores the fact that this information was not provided to the agency in a timely manner, in accordance with the agency's responsibilities under the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, to enable it to verify its veracity and establish the facts," said an IAEA statement, issued a day after ElBaradei was briefed.

ElBardaei's criticism reflected anger at being kept in the dark for so long.

The White House broke its silence regarding the issue on Thursday, hours after top U.S. legislators - members of the House of Representatives Intelligence Committee - were briefed on the alleged reactor. U.S. intelligence officials said evidence included dozens of photographs taken from ground level as well as footage of the interior of the building taken by spy satellites after the Israel Air Force strike.

The alleged reactor was within weeks or months of being functional when Israel Air Force jets destroyed it, a top U.S. official told reporters in Washington, speaking on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the matter. The official said the facility was mostly completed but still needed significant testing before it could have been declared operational.

The IAEA's mission includes trying to keep nuclear proliferation in check, and it depends on member states for information in trying to carry out that task. The agency is investigating allegations that Iran tried to make nuclear weapons, and it is using not only its own research but intelligence provided by the U.S. and other members of the 35-nation IAEA board.

Promising a follow-up, the statement said the IAEA will treat this information with the seriousness it deserves and will investigate the veracity of the information, adding: "Syria has an obligation ... to report the planning and construction of any nuclear facility to the Agency."

Meanwhile Friday, Syria's ambassador to the United Nations said that Damascus was "not afraid" to cooperate with the IAEA in its investigation of the nature of the disputed facility.

"We have close cooperation with the IAEA," Bashar Ja'afari told reporters who asked if his country would cooperate with the probe.

"Syria has nothing to hide ... We are not afraid of this cooperation," he said, noting that his country had joined the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty in 1970.

John Rood, the U.S. undersecretary of state for arms control, briefed ElBaradei by telephone. Additionally, a senior U.S. official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the matter, said a U.S. intelligence team was in Vienna to brief IAEA representatives.

A senior diplomat linked to the IAEA said ElBaradei had already let his displeasure be known to Rood, during the U.S. official's phone call, over the delay between the time the information became available to the U.S. and when he was informed of it. U.S. Congressional Intelligence Committee members also expressed anger Thursday over the seven-month time lapse before their committee was briefed.

In Washington, the State Department brushed aside Elbaradei's complaint.

"We would expect and hope that the IAEA would investigate this matter," spokesman Sean McCormack told reporters. "The fact of the matter now is this is an issue that is worthy of investigation putting aside these questions of timing."

"People can have differing opinions about that, but the fact now is that the IAEA is being briefed, they are being provided the information and we believe that this is certainly an issue that merits close scrutiny and investigation by the IAEA," he said.

"The fact of Syria having a nuclear reactor that is in violation of their NPT obligations in our estimation is something worthy of investigation by the IAEA," McCormack said, referring to the Nonproliferation Treaty. "And, certainly the Syrians as a member of the treaty should grant access to the IAEA to the site."

John Bolton, who has served as U.S. ambassador and before that held Rood's job at a time the U.S. was considering trying to push ElBaradei out from his position, said the IAEA's chief criticism is entirely unwarranted.

"The IAEA was and remains unable to deal with regimes like Syria," he said in an e-mail to the Associated Press. "Israel did what was necessary to defend itself, and the U.S. had no obligation to brief the IAEA in such a matter."

While U.S. undersecretary of state for arms control several years ago, Bolton was a chief ElBaradei critic at a time Washington was lobbying for ElBaradei's replacement because of his differences with the U.S. administration over how much of a nuclear threat Iran and Saddam Hussein's Iraq posed.

ElBaradei did not criticize Syria and North Korea. UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said he lacked concrete information on the issue. But the UN chief told reporters while on a visit to Vienna that "as a matter of principle, this proliferation of weapons of mass destruction ... is a serious source of great concern."

"The international community must work hard to prevent such proliferation," he said.

Repeating its previous stance, Syria denied the allegations Thursday.

In Seoul, Kim Sook, South Korea's top nuclear envoy, said the allegations of nuclear cooperation between North Korea and Syria were credible and urged Pyongyang to fulfill a promise to declare all its atomic programs.

"We share the concern expressed by the U.S. government about the North Korean nuclear weapons program and nuclear proliferation activities," Kim told reporters in a telephone interview Friday.

Top U.S. intelligence officials who briefed reporters in Washington on Thursday said they had high confidence in the judgment that North Korea had aided Syria with a nuclear program whose aim was to produce plutonium. However, they claimed only low confidence for the conclusion that it was meant for weapons development, in part because there was no reprocessing facility at the site - something that would be needed to extract plutonium from spent reactor fuel for use in a bomb.

Related articles:
  • Israel: Iran listening in on IDF communications from Syria
  • Syria: There are no N. Korea-Syria nuclear facilities whatsoever
  • U.S. Senate to discuss N. Korea-Syria nuclear ties
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      1.   Ok, so we need to drag El-Baradei into the Hague 18:19  |  Ovadiah ben Avraham 25/04/08
      2.   had it been nuclear there would still be evidence 18:25  |  El-Baradei is kind 25/04/08
      3.   Hahahahaha. Yeah right! 18:26  |  Gili 25/04/08
      4.   Mohammed El-Baradei makes the joke of the day 18:28  |  dovale 25/04/08
      5.   IAEA: "Israel Must Wait Until Nuked So We Have Proof" 18:40  |  Straight Talk 25/04/08
      6.   Damned if you do..... 18:44  |  Gilles 25/04/08
      7.   which way did they go doc? 18:45  |  rocket man 25/04/08
      8.   Baradei like most Egyptians hates Israel. An Iranian Agent 18:47  |  EgyptJewRefugee 25/04/08
      9.   Menawhile, Iran`s Arak Heavy Water Reactor Continues Aplomb 18:48  |  Ovadiah ben Avraham 25/04/08
      10.   IEAE: A debating society headed by el baradei. 18:52  |  common sense 25/04/08
      11.   THE IAD DROPPED ITS AMUNITION IN TURKEY AND FLED... 19:11  |  TripleJump 25/04/08
      12.   El Baradei presumably wanted to send in inspectors 19:25  |  Jon 25/04/08
      13.   Heavy Haaretz censorship of this commonsense observation 19:32  |  Clickfool 25/04/08
      14.   I Wonder Why US Doesn`t Trust El-Baradi? 19:33  |  Jane 25/04/08
      15.   Why? Sorry they were unable to give them time to move it? 19:36  |  SA 25/04/08
      16.   Shame on IAEA 19:42  |  S 25/04/08
      17.   Beware of Wolves in Sheeps Clothing 19:51  |  Shimon Cleopas 25/04/08
      18.   If Ineffective, Can He Be Decent and Humble - who is paying him? 20:03  |  James Boultorers 25/04/08
      19.   USA is the World Police. WE can do what we like 20:18  |  *BEN JABO 25/04/08
      20.   UN AND IAEA ARE TOOL! IRAN PLEASES IGNORE! 20:29  |  Anti-Bigot 25/04/08
      21.   #13 - That man again? 20:29  |  Meir 25/04/08
      22.   Israel`s record on stopping proliferation better than ElBaradei`s 20:34  |  justthinking 25/04/08
      23.   Israel is above the good and evil 20:44  |  kaled 25/04/08
      24.   Neighborhood Menace 20:48  |  Joe 25/04/08
      25.   An entangled foreign policy. 21:02  |  Atoo 25/04/08
      26.   slam yourself for not having noticed 21:04  |  frenz 25/04/08
      27.   To Joe from NY (I doubt it) ... Israel attacks in self defense 21:07  |  truthwatch 25/04/08
      28.   Baradei was given Nobel Prize. What a joke 21:08  |  Fortunee 25/04/08
      29.   Elbaradei 21:11  |  Mblum 25/04/08
      30.   El Baradei is typical of Useless Nonentity bureaucrats 21:15  |  Voice of Reason 25/04/08
      31.   How Olmert will apologize for not informing the IAEA 21:16  |  Tosefta 25/04/08
      32.   @13 Clickfool, very astute thinking 21:26  |  Mark B. 25/04/08
      33.   @22 justthinking, what a Gotspe 21:29  |  Mark B. 25/04/08
      34.   hiding?? Who`s "hiding" 21:40  |  Akiva P 25/04/08
      35.   Mohammed ElBarade is complicit with Iran, Syria nuke programs.. 21:50  |  Avram 25/04/08
      36.   why? 21:50  |  vik 25/04/08
      37.   The Inspector Clouseau of nuclear proliferation 21:53  |  rick 25/04/08
      38.   1 + 2 = 5; Clickfool`s poor math skills 21:58  |  Fast Spin Echo 25/04/08
      39.   When oh when? 21:59  |  Janice 25/04/08
      40.   @33 Answer to your question "why Iran wants bomb" 22:02  |  justthinking 25/04/08
      41.   Mark B. not that bright either (re: #13) 22:02  |  Fast Spin Echo 25/04/08
      42.   Typical 22:14  |  Sally Cinnamon 25/04/08
      43.   Mark the brazen boy wonders about Persian chutzpah 22:14  |  PantherJet 25/04/08
      44.   Not fair 22:21  |  Mark Lincoln 25/04/08
      45.   For Mark B, on why this is certainly propaganda baloney # 32 22:22  |  Clickfool 25/04/08
      46.   To #39 Janice, Sanctions do keep us from being vaporized . 22:35  |  justthinking 25/04/08
      47.   Fast Spin Echo think hard 22:36  |  Mark B. 25/04/08
      48.   @40 justthinking 22:40  |  Mark B. 25/04/08
      49.   El-Baredei has Conflict of Interest 23:11  |  B Mezritch 25/04/08
      50.   For Fast Spin Echo # 38 23:12  |  Clickfool 25/04/08
      51.   Joe from NYC 23:33  |  Sam 25/04/08
      52.   #16, "He had all what he needed hours after the bombing" 23:44  |  Cipora Julianna Kohn 25/04/08
      53.   ElBaradei is the Neville Chamberlain of our times 23:46  |  Sam 25/04/08
      54.   Janice, have you thought this out? 23:52  |  Sam 25/04/08
      55.   @50 Clickfool, option two is becoming more popular today 23:58  |  Mark B. 25/04/08
      56.   #2 Kind stupid elBarardi 00:00  |  Justice man 26/04/08
      57.   Triple Jump #11 00:08  |  Justice man 26/04/08
      58.   Clicky #13 00:15  |  Justice man 26/04/08
      59.   elBarardi (exposed) 00:18  |  Justice man 26/04/08
      60.   Phanter Jet, which Holocaust options are you referring too? 00:24  |  Mark B. 26/04/08
      61.   Joe from NY #24 00:25  |  Justice man 26/04/08
      62.   Atoo of Canada #25 00:31  |  Justice man 26/04/08
      63.   syria is a big problme 00:41  |  tony 26/04/08
      64.   TripleLie, Israel is also entitled to Arab oil, 300 million 00:47  |  Genuine Tosefta 26/04/08
      65.   Clicky #45 00:50  |  Justice man 26/04/08
      66.   sorry folks 01:04  |  wh 26/04/08
      67.   "nuclear monitoring organization"?? 01:14  |  Blogowitz 26/04/08