Israel reveals secret document about bombing Syrian nuclear site

JERUSALEM

Israel on Tuesday revealed a secret document from 2002 that helped the bombing of what it said was a Syrian nuclear site in 2007.

A military statement said Israeli warplanes on Sept. 6, 2007 struck a Syrian nuclear reactor in the Deir Ezzor area in a mission that was code-named "Outside the Box."

The secret document included a warning from the Israeli military intelligence that Syria was attempting to begin pursuing a nuclear program.

"Recently it became known that secret projects previously unknown to us are being conducted [or at least were being conducted] within the framework of the Syrian Atomic Energy Commission," the Times of Israel newspaper said, citing the cover sheet of the secret document.

The army also published photos and videos of targeting the Syrian nuclear site, and photos of the site before and after the bombing.

The release of the secret document comes as Israel tirelessly seeks to convince Western powers, including the US, to refrain from signing a deal with Iran over its nuclear program.

Israel accuses Iran of seeking to build a nuclear bomb, a claim denied by Tehran, which says its program is designed for peaceful purposes.

Former US President Donald Trump unilaterally withdrew the US from the 2015 Iran nuclear deal in 2018 and reimposed sanctions as part of a "maximum pressure campaign" on Tehran.

Iran retaliated by stepping back from its nuclear-related commitments under the deal. Tehran has since exceeded thresholds on the enrichment of uranium, as well as the amount it is allowed to possess under the pact.

*Writing by Ahmed Asmar in Ankara