The Ukrainian nuclear power plant Zaporizhzhia is again being shelled, while the international ‘atomic watchdog’ IAEA previously expressed serious concerns about the situation around the plant. An employee was injured in the shelling, Ukrainian state sources reported on Sunday evening.
Furthermore, several radiation meters are said to have been broken. As a result, it is no longer possible to measure any increases or leakages of radiation in time and that is “very worrying”, reports the IAEA.
The plant had already been shelled earlier. Power cables and a nuclear fuel storage tank were hit, causing a fire. The fire has been extinguished, but it was reason enough for the nuclear agency to issue a warning. The shelling poses “a real risk of a nuclear catastrophe, which threatens health, including outside Ukraine,” IAEA chief Rafael Grossi said.
Kyiv and Moscow continue to accuse each other of shelling the plant on the banks of the Dnipro River. Zaporizhzhia is the largest power station in Europe and was captured by the Russians at the beginning of the war. Ukrainian militias remained active in the area.
Ukraine has since accused the Russians of firing from the nuclear power plant. Shooting back would be life-threatening. In addition, the Russians would threaten to sabotage the plant. Russia, for its part, says Ukrainian soldiers are firing missiles in the area and blaming the Russians for it.
