Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant Laboratory, Attacked

According to Xinhua News Agency, the International Atomic Energy Agency confirmed on the 3rd that it received a report from the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant stating that drones attacked the external radiation monitoring laboratory of the plant that day.

The International Atomic Energy Agency stated via social media that no casualties have been reported so far, and it is not yet clear whether the attack caused damage to the laboratory. The laboratory is located outside the perimeter wall of the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant. The IAEA on-site team has requested access to the laboratory for inspection.

IAEA Director General Grossi reiterated that any attack near nuclear facilities could pose a nuclear safety risk.

Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant is one of the largest nuclear power plants in Europe. After the full escalation of the Ukraine crisis in February 2022, Russia took control of the plant. Since then, the plant has been repeatedly shelled or attacked by drones, raising international concerns about its safety.

For example, according to reports from the Russian side on April 27 local time, the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant announced on social media that it was attacked by Ukrainian military drones, resulting in one worker’s death.

On May 1 local time, Russia stated that Ukrainian armed forces launched a large-scale drone attack on the Zaporizhzhia region overnight, causing damage to multiple energy infrastructure facilities and disrupting power supply in some settlements.