Ukraine Ticker. Ukraine reports 43,550 Russian soldiers killed +++ Mayor of Zaporizhia warns of nuclear catastrophe.

Disaster at Europe’s largest nuclear power plant “is growing every day,” said the mayor of Enerhodar, where the nuclear power plant is located, in a phone call to the AFP news agency on Sunday. The Russian army is shelling “the infrastructure that ensures the safe operation of the power plant,” added Dmytro Orlov.

The Russian army has occupied the nuclear power plant in south-eastern Ukraine since March, and it has come under repeated fire in recent days. Kyiv and Moscow blame each other for the attacks. The rocket fire raises fears of a catastrophe at Europe’s largest nuclear power plant, and the UN Security Council held an emergency meeting.

“What is happening there is downright nuclear terrorism,” criticized Enerhodar’s mayor Orlov from the city of Zaporizhia, which is still under Ukrainian control. “It can end unexpectedly at any time.” The fire protection rules are repeatedly violated and the situation “continues to heat up”.

“The invaders continue to terrorize the civilian population and the nuclear power plant,” criticized the mayor. Mortar shells are fired at from the occupied villages every day and every night. “The situation is risky and what worries most is that there is no de-escalation process,” Orlov told AFP.

After the first attacks on August 5, a reactor at the Zaporizhia nuclear power plant had to be shut down. A pumping station and radiation sensors were damaged in attacks on Thursday.

Archive image: Uncredited/AP/dpa