Syria’s Deir Az Zor is rich in oil. But the eastern province has been devastated by years of civil war. After nearly 14 years of civil war, Syria’s economy is in tatters. Its infrastructure is in ruins. The nation’s new leadership faces the daunting challenge of rebuilding it.
The government is betting heavily on
foreign investment to jump-start growth.
And some of the Western sanctions are eased. The oil industry – once a major source of revenue – could play a major role.
Most of the oil fields are concentrated in Deir Az Zor, in eastern Syria, but many of them are not under government control.
And the province faces the sheer scale of destruction. Plus, the cost of Deir Az Zor’s oil spills.
UN watchdog finds uranium at alleged Syrian nuclear site from al-Assad era
The IAEA has urged Syria to cooperate fully over allegations it had been building a covert nuclear reactor at the site – allegations Syria denies. The United Nations’ nuclear watchdog has said its inspectors discovered uranium particles at a site in Syria it suspects was once used as part of a clandestine nuclear programme run by the former government of Bashar al-Assad.
Last year, inspectors visited and took environmental samples at “three locations that were allegedly functionally related” to the remote desert site Deir el-Zour, International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) spokesman Fredrik Dahl said in a statement on Tuesday. “Analysis revealed a significant number of anthropogenic natural uranium particles in samples taken at one of the three locations. Some of these uranium particles are consistent with the conversion of uranium ore concentrate to uranium oxide,” said Dahl. This would be typical of a nuclear power reactor.
IAEA Director-General Rafael Grossi reported these findings to the agency’s board of directors on Monday in a report on developments in Syria. The report also stated that “the current Syrian authorities indicated that they had no information that might explain the presence of such uranium particles.”
The IAEA urged Syria on Tuesday to cooperate fully over allegations that it had been building a covert nuclear reactor at Deir Az Zor. Syria has repeatedly denied these allegations…Source: aljazeera.com/news
