Decades after Israel’s Osirak strike, Iraq says it’s seeking civilian nuclear program

Iraq’s government is pursuing a civilian nuclear program, the country’s military spokesman said, a potentially fraught development some four decades after a daring Israeli raid destroyed Baghdad’s reactor at Osirak.

Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani discussed the development of a peaceful nuclear program during a meeting of the Ministerial Council for National Security on Wednesday, according to Maj. Gen. Yehia Rasool.

The reactor would be used to produce electricity, with the oil-rich state looking to reduce its dependence on polluting fossil fuels, Rasool said on X, the social media site formerly known as Twitter. READ MORE