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March 4, 2022

Russia Accused of "Nuclear Terror" for Shelling Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant
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Russia's military says it has taken control of the Zaporizhzhia power
plant in Ukraine after its forces opened fire on the facility overnight
with rockets, artillery and gunfire. The assault sparked a fire that
burned for hours, though it reportedly did not spread to any of the
plant's six reactors, and there's no sign of an increase in radiation
levels at the site. The nuclear plant's operator says managers are now
"working at gunpoint."

Zaporizhzhia is the largest nuclear power plant in Europe and among the
10 largest in the world. Nuclear experts have been warning for weeks of
the risk of a catastrophic meltdown. News of the assault drew
international alarm. British Prime Minister Boris Johnson called for an
emergency meeting of the U.N. Security Council. U.S. Senator Ed Markey
of Massachusetts tweeted, "This would be an international war crime by
Putin that could result in incredible devastation." Ukraine's President
Volodymyr Zelensky accused Russia of "nuclear terror."

President Volodymyr Zelensky: "Europeans, please wake up. Tell your
politicians: Russian troops are shooting at a nuclear power plant in
Ukraine, Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, city of Enerhodar. There are
six nuclear reactors there. Six. In Chernobyl, it was only one reactor
which exploded."



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