Syrian Site Could Have Been Nuclear Reactor

The U.N. nuclear watchdog agency said that a Syrian site bombed by Israel in 2007 had the characteristics of a nuclear reactor. It also admitted that its investigation into Iran's alleged nuclear weapons program is deadlocked. I know that Israel is watching Iran very closely and is ready to strike before they are attacked.

These documents were being shared with the 35 nations on the IAEA's board. The report on Iran, which went to the U.N. Security Council, cautioned that Tehran's stonewalling meant the IAEA could not "provide credible assurances about the absence of undeclared nuclear material and activities." It also noted that the Islamic Republic continued to expand uranium enrichment, an activity that can make both nuclear fuel or missile warhead material. While that conclusion was expected, it was a formal confirmation of Iran's refusal to heed Security Council demands to freeze such activities, despite three sets of sanctions meant to force the enrichment stop.

South Korea Ships Oil To North Korea

South Korea sent a shipload of oil to North Korea, a move expected to trigger the communist nation to shut down its only working nuclear reactor in a landmark first step toward dismantling its atomic bomb program. The chief U.N. inspector, Mohamed ElBaradei, said he expects the agency's monitoring of the shutdown of the North's Yongbyon reactor will start early next week and the initial inspection is expected to be completed within maybe a month or so.