US rebuked Over
Syria Nuclear
Case
By Al Jazeera and agencies
25/04/08 "al Jazeera" -- - The head of the UN nuclear monitoring agency has criticised the US for withholding intelligence information that it says showed the construction of a nuclear reactor in Syria.
Mohamed ElBaradei, head of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), on Friday also hit out at Israel for bombing the site before inspectors could investigate.
It also
described
the alleged
assistance
as a
"dangerous
manifestation''
of North
Korea's
nuclear
proliferation
activities,
but said it
would
continue
six-party
talks to try
to resolve
the nuclear
standoff
with the
isolated
nation.
By Al Jazeera and agencies
25/04/08 "al Jazeera" -- - The head of the UN nuclear monitoring agency has criticised the US for withholding intelligence information that it says showed the construction of a nuclear reactor in Syria.
Mohamed ElBaradei, head of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), on Friday also hit out at Israel for bombing the site before inspectors could investigate.
Washington
alleged that
the facility
had a
military
purpose
until Israel
destroyed it
in a bombing
raid last
September.
The watchdog was critical of both the US and Israel for their handling of the matter.
"In light of the above, the director-general views the unilateral military action by Israel as undermining the due process of verification that is at the heart of the non-proliferation regime," it added.
The agency said it was taking seriously the allegations that were passed on by the United States on Thursday and will investigate the findings.
"[We] will treat this information with the seriousness it deserves and will investigate the veracity of the information," it said.
"Syria has an obligation under its safeguards agreement with the IAEA to report the planning and construction of any nuclear facility."
The watchdog was critical of both the US and Israel for their handling of the matter.
"In light of the above, the director-general views the unilateral military action by Israel as undermining the due process of verification that is at the heart of the non-proliferation regime," it added.
The agency said it was taking seriously the allegations that were passed on by the United States on Thursday and will investigate the findings.
"[We] will treat this information with the seriousness it deserves and will investigate the veracity of the information," it said.
"Syria has an obligation under its safeguards agreement with the IAEA to report the planning and construction of any nuclear facility."
'Come clean'
The
White
House
said in
a
statement
on
Thursday
that
Syria
"must
come
clean"
over its
alleged
secret
co-operation
with
North
Korea on
the
reactor.
The
claims
follow a
briefing
of US
congressional
officials
in
Washington
DC by
intelligence
chiefs,
including
William
Hayden,
the CIA
director.
However,
some
US
legislators
earlier
warned that
the
claims could
wreck
vital
six-party
talks
on
North
Korea's
nuclear
programme.
Later on Thursday, Syria's ambassador to the US dismissed claim as a "ridiculous story".
Imad Moustapha told Al Jazeera that his government maintained there was no evidence of any alleged secret nuclear activity.
Timothy Savage, an analyst from the Nautilus Institute, told Al Jazeera that the US claims could be treated with a degree of sceptism.
"The Bush administration doesn't have a great track record with intelligence, so it's natural that people will approach this with some scepticism," he said.
'Nuclear
facility'
The controversy began last September, when an Israeli air raid destroyed a target in Syrian territory which some reports later said was a nuclear facility being built with North Korean help.
Syria, a signatory to the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), has maintained in the past that the site was an unused military facility.
It later razed the site and built a larger building in its place.
The target of Israel's raid has been veiled in secrecy, with US intelligence and government officials refusing to confirm for months that such a raid even took place.
