A massive amount of natural uranium has been removed by the Iraqi government, and sold to a Canadian company, government spokesman Ali Al Dabbagh said. The 550 tonnes of uranium, named 'yellowcake' was stored in a compound at Tuwaitha, south of Baghdad. This used to be a nuclear complex during Saddam Hussain's era. 'The Iraqi government decided to get rid of the uranium, which amounted to 550 tonnes, because of its potentially harmful affects on Iraq and the region and because it causes pollution,' Dabbagh said on Sunday.
Dabbagh said the uranium had not undergone any enrichment. The Canadian company that purchased the stockpile wasn't named.