MOSCOW (Reuters) – Russian-installed officials in occupied areas of Ukraine’s Zaporizhzhia region said on Tuesday Ukrainian forces were shelling the city of Enerhodar, where the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear power plant, Europe’s largest, is located.
Interfax quoted the Russian-installed Enerhodar authorities as saying that Ukrainian forces began shelling the city at 3 p.m. local time, and accusing them of doing so in order to provoke Russia into returning fire.
The Ukrainian side did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.
Reuters could not immediately verify the latest shelling reports.
Russian forces overran the area around the Zaporizhzhia plant in March, soon after sending tens of thousands of troops into Ukraine. The plant, still operated by Ukrainian staff, remains near the front lines and has been hit by shells multiple times in recent weeks, raising fears of a nuclear disaster.
Ukraine and Russia have blamed each other for shellfire at and around the nuclear reactor complex in southern Ukraine.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy has warned Russian soldiers who direct fire at the plant or use it as a base to shoot from that they will become a “special target” for Ukrainian forces.
U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has called for the establishment of a demilitarised zone around the plant.
(Reporting by Reuters; Editing by Mark Heinrich)
