British anti-terrorist forces have seized kilograms of uranium at London’s Heathrow airport. The cargo posted in Pakistan was addressed to Iranians in the kingdom. The metal is not highly enriched uranium for weapons. However, according to authorities, it could have been used for a so-called dirty bomb. A dirty bomb is a device with conventional explosives and radioactive material attached.
The investigators are currently hunting for all possible leads, as “The Sun” exclusively reports. Special scanners had detected the potentially deadly heavy metal and raised the alarm. Flight handler Swissport was just moving the cargo to a goods depot.
The researchers want to rule out that the uranium was intended to make a dirty bomb. “There are real concerns about what the Iranians who live here did with the classified nuclear material,” The Sun said, according to security sources. “The search for all those involved in this undeclared package is ongoing.”
amount unclear
The material was discovered on December 29 in the hold of a plane coming from Oman. The border police immediately cordoned off the place and opened the cargo shipment in a special room for radioactive materials. The case is now with the UK Counter Terrorism Office.
Investigators are targeting an Iran-based company with offices in the UK. It is being investigated who the recipients should be. No arrests have yet been made.
The “Daily Mail” claims to have learned that the seized shipment contained “per kilo” of uranium. The London police, on the other hand, spoke of a “very small amount of contaminated material”. (kes)