Official wants probe of Syrian nuke site

VIENNA, Oct. 29 (UPI) -- Diplomats in Vienna say there is enough evidence to justify further investigation of a suspected Syrian nuclear site bombed by Israel in September 2007.

Experts from the The International Atomic Energy Agency, the U.N. nuclear watchdog, want to revisit the site and also to follow up on allegations North Korea was helping Syria build a plutonium reactor at the El Kibar site, DEBKAfile reported Wednesday.

The military intelligence Web site says it has learned that IAEA director Mohammed ElBaradei and his deputy Olli Heinonen have been at odds for months over whether the U.N. agency should push ahead with its probe against Syria.

Sources say Heinonen wants to continue the investigation and has submitted a list of dates that Syrian officials are suspected of meeting secretly with North Korean nuclear physicists.

DEBKAfile reported exclusively Oct. 4 that Syria had resumed its nuclear program.