The case of the missing nukes

The week's news at a glance.

Tripoli, Libya

Sophisticated nuclear weapons equipment that Pakistani smugglers sold to Libya was instead delivered to an unknown buyer, the Los Angeles Times reported this week. The missing equipment, which includes centrifuges that can enrich uranium to bomb-grade, was intended for the bomb factory that Pakistani scientist Abdul Qadeer Khan was helping Libya build. But when the U.S. and Britain busted Khan’s smuggling ring in 2003, the shipment was diverted, and international investigators cannot determine whether it went to Iran, North Korea, or elsewhere. “For sure there were other customers,” one investigator said. “We just don’t know who, and we don’t know how far along they might be.”

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE
https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up
To continue reading this article...
Continue reading this article and get limited website access each month.
Get unlimited website access, exclusive newsletters plus much more.
Cancel or pause at any time.
Already a subscriber to The Week?
Not sure which email you used for your subscription? Contact us