IAEA says turbine building damage 'consistent with impact of a drone'

The agency (IAEA) has had experts stationed at the Zaporizhzhia plant since September 2022. The six-unit nuclear power station has been under Russian military control since March 2022, and it sits near the frontline of Russian and Ukrainian forces.

In a post on the social media platform X on Sunday morning, the agency said: "The IAEA team at the ZNPP (Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant) this morning observed damage to the exterior of a turbine building which the plant said was hit by a drone strike yesterday. During a site walk down, the team saw damage to a metal access hatch located several levels up in the building, as well as a few pieces of debris and burned optical fiber remains on the ground. The team's observations are consistent with the impact of a drone.

"The IAEA has also requested access to the inside of the building - noting that it is located immediately next to reactor unit 6 - for further examination. During the walk down, the team was told to shelter after hearing the sound of drones nearby and gunfire to repel them. The team was still able to confirm with their measuring equipment that radiation levels at the site remain normal."

It added that Grossi said Saturday's strike "was a serious incident that endangered key nuclear safety principles. Attacks on nuclear sites are unacceptable and must stop in order to prevent the very real risk of a nuclear accident that would benefit no one".

Russia has accused Ukraine of being behind the drone attack. Ukraine has denied that it had anything to do with it. The IAEA, in line with previous practice during the Russia-Ukraine war, has not attributed blame. Grossi explained the policy, during a media briefing at the United Nations in April 2024, when he said: "We are not commentators. We are not political speculators or analysts, we are an international agency of inspectors. And in order to say something like that, we must have proof, indisputable evidence, that an attack, or remnants of ammunition or any other weapon, is coming from a certain place ... this is why we keep the information as accurate as we can. And we do not trade into speculating".