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Highlights
- The occupants, who seized the Chernobyl nuclear power plant and other facilities in the exclusion zone, have been infected.
- They started off in two columns towards the Ukrainian border.
- The OHCHR recorded 3,167 civilian casualties in the country between 24 February and 30 March 2022.
Russian troops who seized the Chernobyl nuclear power facility on February 24 began departing the station and adjacent exclusion zones on Thursday (31 March 2022), according to various media reports.
They were on their way across the Belarusian border, leaving only a few on the defunct plant's territory.
It claimed in a statement that "the occupants, who seized the Chernobyl nuclear power plant and other facilities in the exclusion zone, have been infected with radiation sickness and started off in two columns towards the Ukrainian border."
According to the report, the Russian military has also withdrawn from the nearby town of Slavutych, which is home to Ukrainian Chernobyl workers.
An employee at the Public Council of the State Agency of Ukraine for Exclusion Zone Management reported that they were "running away irradiated," according to the UK-based tabloid newspaper The Sun.
Also Read: Russia-Ukraine war: Worsening humanitarian crisis as violence escalates
He claimed they were being bussed to a special radiation medical centre in Gomel to receive treatment for their radioactive sickness.
Russian forces allegedly excavated trenches in the highly poisonous Red Forest zone, according to UNIAN news agency, which could have caused their radiation sickness.
Yaroslav Yemelianenko, head manager of Chernobyl Tour, said:
The invading troops were dispatched on a "suicide" mission, according to site staff as their vehicles and equipment lacked anti-radiation shielding.
Source: © Palinchak | Megapixl.com
When the Russians took control of the area, one worker on duty told Reuters that the convoy had kicked up clouds of radioactive dust while driving through the highly toxic 'Red Forest,' which got its name after dozens of square kilometres of pine trees turned red after absorbing radiation from the 1986 blast.
Updates on Russia-Ukraine war
Russia has been conducting military operations in Ukraine for over a month. The Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) recorded 3,167 civilian casualties in the country between 24 February and 30 March 2022. The tally includes 1,232 deaths, including 58 children.
The majority of civilian deaths were caused by the use of explosive weapons with a large effect area, such as heavy artillery and multiple launch rocket systems shelling, as well as missile and air strikes.
Also Read: Gold & palladium dip on progressive peace talks between Russia & Ukraine
