Russia Requests ‘Explanations’ from IAEA on Zaporizhzhia Report

A motorcade transporting the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) expert mission arrives at the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant in the course of Ukraine-Russia conflict outside the Russian-controlled city of Enerhodar in the Zaporizhzhia region, Ukraine, September 1, 2022. (Reuters)
A motorcade transporting the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) expert mission arrives at the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant in the course of Ukraine-Russia conflict outside the Russian-controlled city of Enerhodar in the Zaporizhzhia region, Ukraine, September 1, 2022. (Reuters)
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Russia Requests ‘Explanations’ from IAEA on Zaporizhzhia Report

A motorcade transporting the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) expert mission arrives at the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant in the course of Ukraine-Russia conflict outside the Russian-controlled city of Enerhodar in the Zaporizhzhia region, Ukraine, September 1, 2022. (Reuters)
A motorcade transporting the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) expert mission arrives at the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant in the course of Ukraine-Russia conflict outside the Russian-controlled city of Enerhodar in the Zaporizhzhia region, Ukraine, September 1, 2022. (Reuters)

Russia has requested "additional explanations" from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) on parts of its report on the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant in Ukraine, Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov was quoted as saying on Wednesday.

The IAEA on Tuesday called for shelling near the power station to be halted and for a security zone around the plant to be established immediately in a report published after its long-awaited mission to Zaporizhzhia last week.

The plant has been controlled by Russian forces since March but is still operated by Ukrainian staff and connected to the Ukrainian power grid. Both Kyiv and Moscow have accused each other of firing missiles at the power station, prompting fears of a Chornobyl-style nuclear disaster.

Lavrov told the Interfax news agency that Moscow required more information about the IAEA's findings and had sent a request to provide extra information.

"There is a need for additional explanations because there are a number of issues in the report. I will not list them now, but we have requested clarifications from the IAEA Director General," Interfax cited Lavrov as saying.

Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova accused the West of putting pressure on the IAEA mission to the plant.

The RIA Novosti news agency quoted Zakharova as saying Russia had provided full data on the source of shelling to the IAEA and was questioning why the organization did not name Ukraine as the source of attacks on the nuclear power plant in its report.

She also said Ukraine was coordinating its attacks on the facility with the help of the United States and other Western states.

Ukraine denies attacking the plant and has accused Moscow of storing heavy weapons at the nuclear power station, a claim rejected by Russia.



South Korea Police Say Rite at Family Grave Led to Deadly Wildfire

29 March 2025, South Korea, Andong: A firefighting helicopter tries to extinguish a wildfire in Andong, in Gyeongsang Province, southeastern South Korea. Photo: -/yonhap/dpa
29 March 2025, South Korea, Andong: A firefighting helicopter tries to extinguish a wildfire in Andong, in Gyeongsang Province, southeastern South Korea. Photo: -/yonhap/dpa
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South Korea Police Say Rite at Family Grave Led to Deadly Wildfire

29 March 2025, South Korea, Andong: A firefighting helicopter tries to extinguish a wildfire in Andong, in Gyeongsang Province, southeastern South Korea. Photo: -/yonhap/dpa
29 March 2025, South Korea, Andong: A firefighting helicopter tries to extinguish a wildfire in Andong, in Gyeongsang Province, southeastern South Korea. Photo: -/yonhap/dpa

South Korean police said on Sunday they booked a man suspected of starting what grew into the country's largest wildfire, killing at least 26 people and razing thousands of buildings including historic temples.
Authorities believe the man, who is in his 50s, began the fire in southeastern Uiseong County when he performed an ancestral rite by a family grave on March 22, an official from Gyeongbuk Provincial Police said.
"We are in the process of verifying evidence," the official added.
In South Korea's legal system, booking involves registering a suspect but may not coincide immediately with arrest or charges.
According to Reuters, Yonhap news agency said the man had denied the allegations.
The fire burned about 48,000 hectares (119,000 acres), destroyed an estimated 4,000 structures, and forced tens of thousands of people to evacuate. By Friday the blaze was largely contained although firefighters were still battling small hotspots that had sprung up on Saturday.
The Uiseong fire as well as separate blazes across the country last week left at least 30 people dead and sparked calls for national reforms to better tackle such disasters, which experts say are being exacerbated by climate change.
The forest service said on Sunday another wildfire broke out in a southern area near Suncheonsi, and authorities had deployed 23 firetrucks, four helicopters and 123 firefighters.