The claims came just a day after a team of UN nuclear agency inspectors arrived at the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, which has been caught in heavy recent fighting between Ukrainian and Russian forces, six months after Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered troops to invade Ukraine . The IAEA mission is intended to help secure the site as Moscow and Kyiv swap responsibility for bombings in and around the nuclear plant. “The Dneprovskaya power line was hit. The nuclear plant has turned to serving its own needs,” Vladimir Rogov, a member of the Kremlin-appointed regional administration, wrote on Telegram, adding that a shell hit an area between two reactors. His claims could not be immediately verified. Late on Friday night, Russian-backed authorities said the plant had been under fire for about two hours, blaming Ukrainian forces in the latest in a series of similar claims. As of Saturday morning, neither the Ukrainian government nor the country’s nuclear power operator, Enerhoatom, had commented on the allegations. The plant has suffered repeated complete disconnections from Ukraine’s electricity grid since last week, with Enerhoatom blaming mortar shelling and fires near the site. Local Ukrainian authorities have accused Moscow of pounding two towns overlooking the plant across the Dnieper River with rockets, a charge they have also made repeatedly in recent weeks. In Zorya, a small village about 20 kilometers (12 miles) from the Zaporizhzhia plant, residents on Friday could hear the sound of explosions in the area. It wasn’t the bombing that scared them the most, but the risk of a radioactive leak at the plant. “The power plant, yes, that’s the scariest,” said Natalia Stokoz, a mother of three. “Because children and adults will be affected and it’s scary if the nuclear plant blows up.” Oleksandr Pasko, a 31-year-old farmer, said: “There is stress because we are so close.” Pascoe said Russian bombing has intensified in recent weeks. Archie Bland and Nimo Omer take you to the top stories and what they mean, free every weekday morning Privacy Notice: Newsletters may contain information about charities, online advertising and content sponsored by external parties. For more information, see our Privacy Policy. We use Google reCaptcha to protect our website and Google’s Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply. During the first weeks of the war, the authorities gave iodine tablets and masks to people living near the plant in case of radiation exposure. Recently, they also distributed iodine pills in the city of Zaporizhzhia, about 50 kilometers (31 miles) from the plant. Local officials said on Saturday Russian forces were shelling and launching missile attacks on populated areas in eastern and northeastern Ukraine. The governor of eastern Donetsk region, which has seen some of the heaviest fighting in recent weeks, said two civilians were killed and three others wounded on Friday. Pavlo Kirilenko said in a Telegram post that the casualties included one person killed in the strategic town of Zaitseve, where fighting continued for much of Friday as Russian forces tried to push deeper into Ukrainian-held territory and approach the main city of Bahamut. In the northeastern region of Kharkiv, home to Ukraine’s second-largest city, Governor Oleh Syniehubov said six civilians were taken to hospital overnight due to Russian shelling.
