Uranium smuggled by Pakistan to Libya allegedly caught in Heathrow airport. British police caught the stash which is mentioned as “scrap”. Pakistan declines all allegations of such nature.
A shipment of uranium discovered at Heathrow could have been part of a dry-run operation by Iranian terrorists. To test the resilience of security measures during recent Border Force strikes, a military intelligence expert has warned. Counter-terror police have launched an urgent investigation after the radioactive substance was identified among a shipment of scrap metal on board an Oman Air flight from Pakistan.
The consignment bound for an Iranian-registered business in the UK arrived at Heathrow on Dec 29. Moreover, when Border Force staff were in the grip of an eight-day walk-out.
Pakistan’s government has rejected British media reports that a uranium-contaminated smuggled cargo shipment seized at London’s Heathrow Airport originated from the South Asian nation. “No information to this effect has been shared with us officially. We are confident that the reports are not factual,” Pakistani Foreign Ministry spokeswomen Mumtaz Zahra Baloch.
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Pakistan is a declared nuclear weapons state and runs several China-built civilian nuclear power generation plants. Moreover, Islamabad maintains it has developed a “robust” security and safety system for its nuclear development programs.
“I want to reassure the public that the amount of contaminated material was extremely small. It has been assessed by experts as posing no threat to the public”. Police commander Richard Smith said in a statement to British media. “Although our investigation remains ongoing, from our inquiries so far. It does not appear to be linked to any direct threat.”
Uranium is a natural metal that exists on the earth. But can be dangerous to humans because it is an essential nuclear element. Low-enriched uranium can be used to produce fuel for commercial nuclear power plants. However, Highly enriched uranium has a purity of 20% or more and is used in research reactors. Weapons-grade uranium is 90% enriched or more.