UN Nuclear Agency Says Political Determination Needed to Bring Back Off-Site Power to Zaporizhzhia Atomic Facility

The head of the UN’s nuclear watchdog announced on the end of the week that he was discussing proposals with Moscow and Kyiv to restore off-site power to the Russian-held atomic facility in Zaporizhzhia, calling it a “question of political determination”. Europe’s largest nuclear power plant has been disconnected from external power since late September, with the reactor cores being cooled by emergency diesel generators. IAEA chief, Rafael Grossi, stated: “Both sides say they stand ready to carry out the necessary repairs on their own territories of the frontline. But for this to occur, the safety conditions on the ground must get better so that the engineers can perform their vital work without risking their lives and safety.”

French War Photographer Killed in Moscow’s Drone Attack in Eastern Ukraine

French photojournalist Antoni Lallican has been killed by a Russian drone attack in eastern Ukraine on Friday. The 37-year-old prize-winning journalist was embedded with a Ukrainian military unit near the frontline in the eastern Ukraine when killed, officials in Kyiv said. Ukrainian journalist Georgiy Ivanchenko was wounded in the same attack. “The two media professionals were using safety gear, and their protective armor had clear labels with the word ‘PRESS’ on them,” the military unit said on Facebook.

Association Leader Denounces Attacks on Journalists

The leader of the Ukrainian Union of Journalists, Serhiy Tomilenko, told local press that Lallican had been killed near the town of Druzhkivka, one of the most active areas of the 1,250km eastern battlefront. “By targeting reporters, the Russian army is deliberately hunting those trying to document atrocities,” Tomilenko remarked. “To media workers, every mission to the combat area is a mortal danger. Antoni Lallican accepted this peril again and again, coming to Ukraine, travelling to Donbas, recording what many prefer not to see.”

France’s leader, Emmanuel Macron, expressed “deep sadness” for Lallican’s death, saying on X he was “the victim of an attack by Russian drones”.

The European and International Federations of Journalists condemned Lallican’s demise in what it termed a “war crime”. Kyiv’s top diplomat, Andriy Sybiga, asserted Russia “persists in attacking media personnel”, calling it “a heinous crime and violation of international humanitarian law”.

Moscow Conducts Biggest Attack on Ukraine’s Energy Infrastructure

Moscow has executed its most extensive offensive on the country’s energy system since the initial invasion in two years ago, Kyiv’s state-owned gas operator Naftogaz reported on the same day. “As a result of this attack, a significant portion of our installations have been damaged. Some of the destruction is severe,” the Naftogaz chair, Sergiy Koretsky, said. About three dozen rockets and dozens of unmanned aircraft were fired at its sites in the north-eastern Kharkiv region and central Ukraine, Naftogaz added. “Some were successfully shot down. Unfortunately, not all,” it said. This led to power cuts in several regions, the country’s energy authority said.

Large-Scale Livestock Losses in Airstrike

Approximately 13,000 pigs were lost in Ukraine’s north-east overnight on Friday after a Russian drone attack caused a blaze on a farm, the national rescue agency said, noting that a employee at the site was also injured. Images released by the service showed pig carcasses stacked in cramped sheds that were partly burned down, some with their coverings shattered. The animals were held in eight stalls spanning just over 13,000 sq metres, all of which were consumed in the inferno, the rescue team added.

Ukraine Severs Diplomatic Ties with Nicaragua

Ukraine has cut off official relations with the Central American country in response to it recognising occupied Ukrainian territory as belonging to Moscow, Ukraine’s diplomatic office said. The nation was one of only five UN countries to vote against condemning Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in the previous year. In a letter to Vladimir Putin in mid-year, the Nicaraguan president, Daniel Ortega, portrayed the military action as a “heroic battle against Nato-backed Ukrainian neo-nazism”. The Ukrainian foreign ministry said it considered Nicaragua’s action “an attempt to weaken the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine”. Ukraine does not have significant trade ties with the nation or an diplomatic mission in the state.