U.S. Retrieves radioactive cancer-treatment source from Guatemala over dirty-bomb fears

In a joint effort, U.S. and Guatemalan teams removed a cobalt-60 source, originally part of a U.S.-origin teletherapy unit, from a disused medical facility in Guatemala. The National Nuclear Security Administration’s Los Alamos experts began the extraction in May, with Guatemala’s National Centre of Radioactive Wastes and Ministry of Energy and Mines handling transport and site security. After secure packaging, the Defense Threat Reduction Agency moved the material to a protected U.S. storage site.

NNSA officials highlighted the move as a key element of the 2026 Counterterrorism Strategy aimed at stopping terrorists from obtaining radiological weapons. Deputy administrator Matthew Napoli called the repatriation a “massive win for homeland security,” and Guatemalan technical laboratory head Mayra Villatoro praised the collaboration for eliminating a community danger. DTRA program manager Robert Bridges noted the success as evidence of effective inter-agency cooperation.