Around 2.5 tons of natural uranium have gone missing from a site in war-torn Libya, the United Nations nuclear watchdog has revealed, raising security and safety fears.

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) said in a statement that its director general, General Rafael Mariano Grossi, had informed member states about the missing uranium on Wednesday.

During an inspection carried out Tuesday, “agency safeguards inspectors found that 10 drums containing approximately 2.5 tons of natural uranium in the form of uranium ore concentrate were not present as previously declared at a location in the State of Libya,” the statement said.