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Israel’s airstrike on Syria last month reportedly targeted an unfinished nuclear reactor.

Israeli warplanes dispatched to northern Syria on Sept. 6 bombed a partly constructed reactor, The New York Times reported over the weekend, citing U.S. and foreign intelligence sources.

Israel has confirmed an airstrike took place without discussing its target. Syrian President Bashar Assad said a disused military building was bombed.

The reactor, possibly based on a North Korean model, was years away from completion, the Times reported, and Israel may have struck to warn Iran that its nuclear facilities could be next on the hit list.

Some U.S. officials voiced misgivings about the timing of the strike as the reactor did not pose an immediate threat, the newspaper reported.

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