Russia tortures staff at Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant and kidnaps children, Ukraine chief claims

Russian soldiers have reportedly taken more than 1,000 technicians at Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant hostage, subjecting them to torture and kidnapping their children.

Ukraine’s chief atomic inspector, Oleg Korikov, has accused Russian soldiers of using the staff’s children to coerce them and the staff are also subject to beatings and detention.

He told i news: “They take kids and move them to Russia to manipulate the staff, so in any case of their non-compliance or a disagreement, they can do something wrong with their kids.”

He added that Russia is using the situation at the nuclear power plant for global “blackmail” and “there are a lot of cases of beating staff, a lot of cases of imprisoning them”.

Mr Korikov’s allegations have not been able to be verified, according to i news, but it is in line with previous accusations of acts of intimidation at the power station and growing concerns of threats to the plant.

Official data from Ukraine shows that at least 19,000 children from across the country have been forcibly taken to Russia since Vladimir Putin’s assault began.

This month the Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelensky, claimed Russia may be planning to “simulate an attack” on the nuclear power plant. He alleged that Russian troops have placed “objects resembling explosives” on the roofs of buildings at the site.

Vladimir Putin’s spokesman responded that there was “a great threat of sabotage by the Kyiv regime, which can be catastrophic in its consequences”.

Russian troops seized the station which is Europe’s largest nuclear facility in February 2022 - but the plant is still being staffed by Ukrainians.

Kyiv has previously likened the working conditions of staff working at the plant to that of hostages, prompting the UN on 5 July to demand that the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) was allowed to inspect parts of the plant.

The agency said it had “requested additional access to confirm the absence of mines or explosives at the site” including on “the rooftops of reactor units 3 and 4”, turbine halls and “some parts of the cooling system”.

The IAEA said that “the military presence at the site appeared unchanged”.

It issued a statement saying that its team has carried out inspections at the power plant over the past week but it has not observed any heavy military equipment or "visible indication of explosives or mines."

However, the statement added that the experts “are still awaiting access to the rooftops of the reactor buildings” and the nuclear power plant is in a "volatile security situation in the region located on the frontline of the conflict."

Director general Rafael Mariano Grossi added: “With military tension and activities increasing in the region where this major nuclear power plant is located, our experts must be able to verify the facts on the ground.

“Their independent and objective reporting would help clarify the current situation at the site, which is crucial at a time like this with unconfirmed allegations and counter allegations.”