Conflicts & War

Grossi: IAEA mission heading to Ukraine’s besieged nuclear plant

Vienna/Lviv, Aug 29 (EFE).- A team of experts from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) is heading to the occupied Zaporizhzhya nuclear power plant in southeastern Ukraine, agency chief Rafael Grossi said Monday.

“The day has come, (IAEA’s) Support and Assistance Mission to Zaporizhzhya (ISAMZ) is now on its way,” Grossi wrote on Twitter, along with a photo of the 14-strong team.

“We must protect the safety and security of Ukraine’s and Europe’s biggest nuclear facility. Proud to lead this mission which will be in ZNPP later this week,” he said.

The mission includes Massimo Aparo, IAEA safeguards department chief, and Lydie Evrard, IAEA head of nuclear safety and security.

Shelling has been reported around the Zaporizhzhya in recent days but no radiation leaks have been reported at the facility, according to data Ukraine has provided to the IAEA.

Russian troops on Sunday night shelled two neighborhoods in the city of Enerhodar, where the power plant is located, the city’s exiled mayor Dmytro Orlov said in a Telegram post.

Orlov added: “information about the victims and the extent of the destruction is being clarified.”

“Windows have been shattered in some of the neighboring buildings. Some of the cars parked in the yard (of the building) caught fire,” the mayor said.

The plant has been under Russian occupation since March, just days after Moscow launched a full blow offensive in Ukraine on February 24. EFE

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