Atomic energy officials say a substance seized by police near the Syrian border in Turkey was not weapons-grade uranium.
The Anatolia news agency says the material was harmless and contained zinc, iron, zirconium and manganese.
The announcement ends days of speculation the substance might have been destined for neighbouring Iraq.
Police, acting on a tip, recovered the material in a taxi last week in Sanliurfa province, near the Syrian border. Two Turks who were trying to sell the material as uranium have been released from custody.
The seizure alarmed intelligence agencies around the world when the Turkish police said it weighed 35 pounds last week. Police now say the material weighed only five ounces.
Authorities initially included the weight of the lead container in which the material was placed, police say.
PA
