Russia warns of 'nuclear apocalypse' after drone strike killing of 'traitor'

Russia has warned of “nuclear apocalypse” following the alleged Ukrainian assassination of a senior engineer at the Zaporizhzhia atomic power plant.

Alexander Yakovlev, 46, was killed in a drone strike between the facility and the nearby town of Enerhodar. He was travelling in a service vehicle and died alongside his driver, according to Russian reports.

Yakovlev served as chief engineer at the Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant, Europe’s largest nuclear facility. Ukraine’s Mirotvorets website had branded him a “traitor to the motherland” and an “accomplice to terrorists and Russian occupiers.”

The incident comes amid speculation over Putin’s use of a body double after Ukraine’s military intelligence chief shed light on the Russian president’s tactics to evade danger.

By continuing to work for the Russians following Putin’s invasion of Ukraine, he faced accusations of “collaboration in the form of assisting the occupiers in committing acts of nuclear terrorism and blackmail.”

Following the occupation of this part of the Zaporizhzhia region, he was granted a Russian passport.

Rafael Grossi, head of the International Atomic Energy Agency, the UN nuclear watchdog, condemned the incident without directly naming either Ukraine or Russia.

The killing “represents an unacceptable attack on the plant and its management, seriously threatening nuclear safety.”

He called for an “immediate end” to all attacks “on or near nuclear sites.”

Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said: “This is a crime of the Kyiv regime that Grossi must finally see – we demand a clear statement condemning this killing from the relevant international bodies, first and foremost the IAEA.”

Rosatom chief Alexei Likhachev stated: “We expect the IAEA to respond promptly, concretely, and clearly to this tragedy.”

Russian forces seized the facility in south-eastern Ukraine during the opening weeks of Russia’s 2022 invasion.

Staunchly pro-Putin MP Mikhail Sheremet, representing the illegally occupied Crimea, alleged that Volodymyr Zelensky’s “terrorist regime” was “so clearly striving to plunge the world into a nuclear apocalypse”.

He claimed: “I have no doubt that this terrorist attack was coordinated with the leadership of a number of NATO countries, which makes them direct accomplices in the crime.”

Russian authorities launched a criminal investigation into the fatalities, while Ukraine offered no immediate response.