Russia says nuclear plant chief engineer killed in Ukrainian attack

The chief engineer of Europe’s largest nuclear power plant has been killed in a Ukrainian attack, Russian authorities reported on Wednesday.

Alexey Likhachev, head of Russia’s state nuclear corporation Rosatom, said a Ukrainian drone had killed the engineer of the Russian-controlled Zaporizhzhya nuclear power plant.

Likhachev said the drone hit a vehicle near the boundary between the plant’s site and the city of Enerhodar. The driver of the vehicle was also killed in the attack.

He described the incident as a terrorist attack and called on the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) to respond.

“We expect the IAEA to provide a prompt, concrete and clear reaction to this tragedy,” he said.

In a post on X, the IAEA said it had been informed of the attack.

IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi condemned the incident which represented an “unacceptable attack” on the plant and its management and seriously threatened nuclear safety, the agency said on X.

“The IAEA calls for an immediate end to all attacks on or near nuclear sites and their staff.”

The nuclear power plant has been under Russian control since March 2022 and remains shut down for safety reasons.

A team from the IAEA is permanently on site to monitor the situation and prevent a nuclear accident.