Fourth Strike Hits 75 Meters from Bushehr Nuclear Plant, IAEA Says Radiological Accident Possible
The BNPP holds approximately 72 metric tons of fuel in its reactor core and 210 metric tons of unrepatriated spent fuel, according to Russia’s state nuclear corporation Rosatom.
VIENNA — The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), based on independent analysis of satellite imagery, reported on April 6 that recent military strikes impacted within 75 meters of the Bushehr Nuclear Power Plant (BNPP) site perimeter.
The fourth such incident near the operating reactor since March 17 killed one physical protection staff member and damaged a building through shockwaves and fragments, according to the IAEA.
IAEA Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi stated the strikes “pose a very real danger to nuclear safety and must stop,” adding that continued military activity near the plant, which contains large amounts of nuclear fuel, “could cause a severe radiological accident with harmful consequences for people and the environment in Iran and beyond.”
The BNPP holds approximately 72 metric tons of fuel in its reactor core and 210 metric tons of unrepatriated spent fuel, according to Russia’s state nuclear corporation Rosatom.
Bushehr sits 180 miles (289 km) from Kuwait City and 181 miles (291 km) from Manama, computed from the plant’s coordinates. Doha is 248 miles (399 km) away.
Qatar depends on desalination for 99 percent of its freshwater supply, Kuwait and Bahrain for 90 percent, and Saudi Arabia for 70 percent, according to Gulf state government data.
Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said in an April 5 letter to United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres that “radioactive fallout will end life in Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) capitals, not Tehran.”
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