The U.N.’s chief nuclear watchdog warned Sunday morning that combatants are “playing with fire” amid new reports of shelling near Ukraine’s Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, which has been occupied by invading Russian troops since March.
The Ukrainian managers of the plant told inspectors from the U.N. International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) that there was new damage to the site’s building and equipment, but critical safety systems remain intact so far.
Powerful explosions near the plant, the largest nuclear power facility in Europe, were heard Saturday night into Sunday morning, according to Russia’s official TASS news agency
“The news from our team yesterday and this morning is extremely disturbing,” Rafael Mariano Grossi, the director general of the IAEA, said in a statement ” Explosions occurred at the site of this major nuclear power plant, which is completely unacceptable.