British counterterrorism police are investigating after border officers seized cargo contaminated with uranium at London's Heathrow Airport.
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The Metropolitan Police force said Wednesday that “a very small amount of contaminated material was identified after routine screening within a package incoming to the U.K.” on Dec. 29.
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It said the force's Counterterrorism Command is investigating. There have been no arrests.
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The BBC reported that the uranium was in a shipment of scrap metal. The Sun, which first reported the story, said the shipment originated in Pakistan and arrived on a flight from Oman.
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Police Commander Richard Smith said the amount of contaminated material was “extremely small and has been assessed by experts as posing no threat to the public.”?
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He said it “does not appear to be linked to any direct threat,” but the investigation continues.
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“We will, of course, follow every avenue to see what the background to this was and satisfy ourselves that there's no further threat," he said.
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Prime Minister Rishi Sunak's spokesman declined to comment on an ongoing police operation.