Russia reports Ukrainian drone strike near Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant

What the report says

Russian and international officials reported a drone strike near the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant in occupied southeastern Ukraine on Tuesday, with Moscow saying the drone was launched by Ukraine. According to Russian accounts cited by Al Jazeera, one nuclear specialist was killed and 17 people were wounded, most of them plant employees. The Russian management of the facility described the incident as one of the most serious in the plant’s history.

The International Atomic Energy Agency said its earlier information indicated the strike hit staff at a bus stop, but it reported no nuclear safety or security damage. Even so, the UN nuclear watchdog urged military commanders and others to stop actions targeting nuclear plants or their workers, warning about the risks to nuclear safety. The agency said the event occurred ahead of a planned visit by Director-General Rafael Grossi, though it was not clear whether that trip would proceed.

Zaporizhzhia is Europe’s largest nuclear plant and has drawn sustained concern since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. Russia seized the facility about a month after the invasion, and it has remained under Russian control since then. Its reactors are shut down, but analysts and officials have long warned that fighting nearby could still damage critical systems or create radioactive release risks. Later on Tuesday, Al Jazeera also reported a separate Russian strike on a thermal power plant in central Ukraine, according to DTEK.