Uranium Tainted Material (Inset) was intercepted at Heathrow Airport on December 29. News 18
London (UK): Material tainted with uranium has been confiscated by Border Force agents at Heathrow Airport.
The incident is reportedly being looked into by counter-terrorism forces after traces of the radioactive substance were discovered in a package entering the UK on December 29.
Following inspection, it was determined to “pose no harm to the public.”
According to what is hitherto known, the consignment was intended for a UK company with connections to Iran.
The uranium, according to sources, was “not weapons-grade” and so could not be utilised to create a thermonuclear device.
However, it is believed that the agencies are looking into the possibility that the uranium was smuggled to create ‘dirty bomb’–an improvised nuclear device.
It is not an “atomic” bomb. The dirty bomb is a conventional weapon using conventional explosives (such as dynamite or TNT) to disperse or spread radioactive material.
Meanwhile, sources including a passenger from Oman who was on the same plane that had ‘kilos’ of Uranium, told reporters that the box was sent from Pakistan.
An independent research agency also claimed via Twitter that the package originated from a Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission facility.
The force said the material has been identified as being contaminated with uranium, no arrests have been made and officers are working with partner agencies to investigate and ensure there is no risk to the public.
However, reports said there is an overwhelming concern over what the Iranians living in the UK wanted with non-disclosed nuclear material.
The Sun quoted a source, who said, “Security bosses are treating this with the seriousness it deserves. Protocol was not followed and this is now an anti-terror operation”.
The undeclared package was discovered by specialised scanners as it was being delivered to a freight shed.
When Border Force agents realised the consignment included uranium, they isolated it in a radioactive chamber and alerted the counterterrorism police.
After the incident, Commander Richard Smith of the Met Police shared a statement reassuring the public that the amount of tainted material was incredibly minimal and that scientists have determined that there is no risk to thegeneral population.
“Although our investigation remains ongoing, from our inquiries so far, it does not appear to be linked to any direct threat,” he said.
Former Washington official Robert Joseph told the Daily Mail while citing the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) stats that Iran possesses 60% enriched uranium, which is sufficient for at least one and maybe two bombs.
“They are getting close to this breakaway point, and we really need to negotiate with them, we have been saying for years. They are present,” he said.
Joseph was the chief negotiator to Libya in 2003 and is credited with convincing Colonel Muammar Gaddafi to give up his nuclear weapons programme.
Iran, according to MP Matthew Offord, “frequently tests ballistic missiles and is attempting to obtain enough uranium to be able to construct a bomb.”
Uranium, a radioactive metal, was a crucial component of one of the most heinous war crimes ever committed when Hiroshima, Japan, was attacked in 1945.
Uranium is radioactive by nature and constantly decays in pursuit of a more stable configuration due to the instability of its nucleus.
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