World faces ‘race against time’ to prevent nuclear terror

THE world faces a “race against time” to prevent nuclear terror, the United Nation’s nuclear watchdog chief said yesterday, citing an extensive illicit market in nuclear and radioactive materials after the September 11 attacks.

More than 24 companies or individuals were engaged in the sale of nuclear materials and more than 60 incidents of trafficking in nuclear or other radioactive material are expected this year, said Mohamed ElBaradei, who heads the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).

“The threat of nuclear terrorism is real and current,” he told reporters at a Sydney conference on nuclear proliferation and terror. “We need to do all we can to work on the new phenomena called nuclear terrorism, which was sprang on us after 9/11 when we realized terrorists had become more sophisticated and had shown an interest in nuclear and radioactive material,” El Baradei said.