Repercussions of hitting Bushehr nuclear power plant could be ‘serious,’ IAEA chief says

International Atomic Energy Agency head Rafael Grossi warned on Friday that an attack on Iran’s Bushehr nuclear power plant could have “serious” consequences, as it contains large amounts of nuclear material.

“I want to make it absolutely and completely clear that, in case of an attack on the Bushehr nuclear power plant, a direct hit would result in a very high release of radioactivity to the environment,” Grossi said at a meeting of the UN Security Council in New York.

In addition, he said that hitting the two lines supplying electrical power to Bushehr would also lead to the release of radioactivity to the environment, as it would cause its reactor core to melt out.

The radioactive releases can go “within and beyond the boundaries of the state which has been attacked,” he said.

“I, therefore, again call for maximum restraint.”

Meanwhile, UN chief Antonio Guterres has called upon all parties involved in the Israeli-Iranian tensions to “give peace a chance,” warning that the extension of this conflict could start an uncontrollable fire.