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A drone strike has targeted the United Arab Emirates’ sole nuclear power plant, sparking a fireplace on its perimeter.
There have been no reports of injuries or radiological release, however the strike has nervous locals because the Iran ceasefire stays tenuous.
Nobody has immediately claimed responsibility for the targeted strike, and the UAE has not blamed anyone.
It has, nonetheless, accused Iran of launching multiple drone and missile attacks in recent days as tensions have risen over the Strait of Hormuz, a significant energy waterway that Iran still has in a chokehold.
This weekend, President Donald Trump suggested hostilities could resume as diplomatic efforts aimed toward a more durable peace have repeatedly faltered.
Iranian state television has also repeatedly aired segments with anchors holding Kalashnikov-style rifles in an effort to arrange the general public for war – including one segment, where the anchor fired directly on the UAE flag.
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The 20 billion dollar Barakah nuclear power plant was built by the UAE with the assistance of South Korea and went online in 2020.
It’s the primary and only nuclear power plant within the Arab world and may provide 1 / 4 of all of the energy needs within the country.
The UAE’s nuclear regulator said the fireplace didn’t affect plant safety and confirmed that every one units are operating normally.
The Vienna-based International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), the United Nations’ nuclear watchdog, said the strike caused a fireplace in an electrical generator and that one reactor was being powered by emergency diesel generators.
IAEA director-general Rafael Mariano Grossi expressed ‘grave concern’ in regards to the incident and said military activity that threatens nuclear safety is unacceptable, the agency said in a press release.
Sunday’s strike marked the primary time the four-reactor Barakah plant has been targeted within the war.
It’s near the border with Saudi Arabia, some 140 miles west of the UAE’s capital city, Abu Dhabi.
Fighting has also heated up between Israel and the Iran-backed Hezbollah militant group in Lebanon despite a nominal ceasefire there.
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