What's happened
An expert team from the United Nations nuclear agency plan to stay at the Russian-held Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant after gaining long-awaited access to the site on Thursday.
Why it matters
The physical integrity of the Zaporizhzhia plant had been violated on several occasions, raising fears of a nuclear incident. The IAEA inspectors will provide an impartial, neutral and technically sound assessment of the situation, which is significant given the immense risks of combat around a site loaded with radioactive material.
What the papers say
All sources report on the IAEA inspection team gaining access to the Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant and staying there to assess the damage to the plant from weeks of shelling, its ability to operate safely and other risks. All sources also report on the IAEA chief Rafael Grossi warning that the physical integrity of the plant had been violated on several occasions. The sources differ in their portrayal of the situation, with some highlighting the immense risks of combat around a site loaded with radioactive material and others focusing on the potential for a Chernobyl-like catastrophe due to shelling. The sources also differ in their level of detail and emphasis on certain aspects of the story.
How we got here
The Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant has been frequently shelled in recent weeks, raising fears of a nuclear incident. Russia seized the plant early in the now more than six-month-old war, and areas to the south are now the focus of a major Ukrainian counter-offensive. The IAEA inspection team's visit to the plant is one of the most dangerous and complicated missions in the agency's history.
More on these topics
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The International Atomic Energy Agency is an international organization that seeks to promote the peaceful use of nuclear energy, and to inhibit its use for any military purpose, including nuclear weapons.
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Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country located in Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. Covering an area of 17,125,200 square kilometres, it is the largest country in the world by area, spanning more than one-eighth of the Earth's in
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Rafael Mariano Grossi is an Argentine diplomat. Since 3 December 2019, he serves as Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency.
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Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest country in Europe after Russia, which it borders to the east and north-east.