# Construction intensifies at site linked to Israel’s suspected nuclear program, satellite photos show
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Construction work has intensified on a major new structure at a facility key to Israel’s [long-suspected atomic weapons program](https://apnews.com/article/israel-iran-nuclear-weapons-ambiguity-0090134eb072f2df2523fcd38f0ddd85), according to satellite images analyzed by experts. They say it could be a new reactor or a facility to assemble nuclear arms — but secrecy shrouding the program makes it difficult to know for sure.
Seven experts who examined the images all said they believed the construction was related to Israel’s long-suspected nuclear weapons program, given its proximity to the reactor at Dimona, where no civilian power plant exists. However, they split on what the new construction could be.
Three said the location and size of the area under construction and the fact that it appeared to have multiple floors meant the most likely explanation for the work was the construction of a new heavy water reactor. Such reactors can produce plutonium and another material key to nuclear weapons.
The other four acknowledged it could be a heavy water reactor but also suggested the work could be related to a new facility for assembling nuclear weapons. They declined to be definitive given the construction was still in an early stage.
“It’s probably a reactor — that judgement is circumstantial but that’s the nature of these things,” said Jeffrey Lewis, an expert at the James Martin Center for Nonproliferation Studies at the Middlebury Institute of International Studies, who based his assessment on the images and Dimona’s history. “It’s very hard to imagine it is anything else.”
Israel does not confirm or deny having atomic weapons, and its government did not respond to requests for comment. The White House, which is Israel’s staunchest ally, also did not respond to requests for comment.
Codex_Absurdum on
Israel correspond parfaitement à la définition de “rogue nation” ou “état voyou”:
>A rogue nation (or rogue state) is a country that is considered dangerous to world peace because it behaves in a way that disregards international law, norms, and treaties, often through aggressive, unpredictable actions, sponsoring terrorism, or developing weapons of mass destruction.
Mais soutien indéfectible quand même… /s
Mysterious_Bit_5385 on
Je crois Kennedy il étais pas super fan du programme nucléaire israélien .
Johnson lui a laissé les israélien subtilisé de l’uranium hautement enrichi , aux États Unis .
Après , y’a d’autres trucs fun ds le programme nucléaire israélien . Comme la participation ds le nucléaire civile au début , les accords entre Israël et l’Afrique du Sud de l’apartheid et de l’incident du double flash de vela …
Une pièce de théâtre , mais pas celle qu’ont aimerais voir .
3 commenti
# Construction intensifies at site linked to Israel’s suspected nuclear program, satellite photos show
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Construction work has intensified on a major new structure at a facility key to Israel’s [long-suspected atomic weapons program](https://apnews.com/article/israel-iran-nuclear-weapons-ambiguity-0090134eb072f2df2523fcd38f0ddd85), according to satellite images analyzed by experts. They say it could be a new reactor or a facility to assemble nuclear arms — but secrecy shrouding the program makes it difficult to know for sure.
The work at the [Shimon Peres Negev Nuclear Research Center](https://apnews.com/article/secret-israel-nuclear-construction-ecd8b6f3ffb329aa1fc566b9f9336038) near the city of Dimona will renew questions about Israel’s widely believed status as the Mideast’s only nuclear-armed state.
It could also draw international criticism, especially since it comes after Israel and the United States [bombed nuclear sites across Iran](https://apnews.com/article/israel-iran-war-nuclear-talks-geneva-news-06-21-2025-a7b0cdaba28b5817467ccf712d214579) in June over their fears that the Islamic Republic could use its enrichment facilities to pursue an atomic weapon. Among the sites attacked was Iran’s heavy water reactor at Arak.
Seven experts who examined the images all said they believed the construction was related to Israel’s long-suspected nuclear weapons program, given its proximity to the reactor at Dimona, where no civilian power plant exists. However, they split on what the new construction could be.
Three said the location and size of the area under construction and the fact that it appeared to have multiple floors meant the most likely explanation for the work was the construction of a new heavy water reactor. Such reactors can produce plutonium and another material key to nuclear weapons.
The other four acknowledged it could be a heavy water reactor but also suggested the work could be related to a new facility for assembling nuclear weapons. They declined to be definitive given the construction was still in an early stage.
“It’s probably a reactor — that judgement is circumstantial but that’s the nature of these things,” said Jeffrey Lewis, an expert at the James Martin Center for Nonproliferation Studies at the Middlebury Institute of International Studies, who based his assessment on the images and Dimona’s history. “It’s very hard to imagine it is anything else.”
Israel does not confirm or deny having atomic weapons, and its government did not respond to requests for comment. The White House, which is Israel’s staunchest ally, also did not respond to requests for comment.
Israel correspond parfaitement à la définition de “rogue nation” ou “état voyou”:
>A rogue nation (or rogue state) is a country that is considered dangerous to world peace because it behaves in a way that disregards international law, norms, and treaties, often through aggressive, unpredictable actions, sponsoring terrorism, or developing weapons of mass destruction.
Mais soutien indéfectible quand même… /s
Je crois Kennedy il étais pas super fan du programme nucléaire israélien .
Johnson lui a laissé les israélien subtilisé de l’uranium hautement enrichi , aux États Unis .
Après , y’a d’autres trucs fun ds le programme nucléaire israélien . Comme la participation ds le nucléaire civile au début , les accords entre Israël et l’Afrique du Sud de l’apartheid et de l’incident du double flash de vela …
Une pièce de théâtre , mais pas celle qu’ont aimerais voir .