South African nuclear technology project fingered in spy cables

A leaked security document says that Chinese spies were suspected of break-ins at South Africa’s now mothballed Pebble Bed Modular Reactor nuclear energy project.

The document dated December 2009 is one of several obtained and published by Al Jazeera last month. It described Africa as the new El Dorado of international spy activity with South Africa as its hub.

The document describes how several foreign intelligence services had shown interest in progress on the PBMR experimental reactor.