The Ministry of Health of Ukraine made an appeal this Friday to the population to avoid panic and warned against taking iodine pills, after statements by President Volodymyr Zelensky who accused Moscow of preparing an “attack” against an occupied nuclear power plant. .
The statements issued this Thursday by Zelensky about the risk of an attack on the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant (southeast), the largest in Europe and occupied by Russian troops since March 2022, have raised a new wave of concern in a country marked by the nuclear crisis. Chernobyl disaster in 1986.
“Our secret services have obtained information by which Russia is setting the stage for a terrorist attack on the Zaporizhzhia power plant, with a radiation leak,” Zelensky said.
The Kremlin immediately commented on this accusation, calling it a “lie.” Following the statement by the Ukrainian president, the Ministry of Health published on Telegram the recommendations to follow in the event of a nuclear incident, recalling that iodine pills will not be necessary.
“Read and share but don’t panic. Do not play the enemy’s game,” the ministry urged. “President Zelensky has not said anything new. Russia is a terrorist country that, like a monkey with a grenade, can expect anything.”
In a second statement released today, the Ukrainian ministry warned about the undesirable effects of iodine pills. “The uncontrolled ingestion of potassium iodine is dangerous” and can lead to “serious consequences” and “even death,” he insisted.
According to an employee at the Kiev pharmacy, the demand for iodine pills “increased by 100-150%” after Zelensky’s speech, the AFP news agency reported.
Iodine pills are intended for the prevention of thyroid cancer in the event of radioactive emissions caused by a serious nuclear accident. The medicine does not protect against radioactive elements such as cesium 134 or 137.
The military offensive launched on February 24, 2022 by Russia in Ukraine has so far caused the flight of more than 14.7 million people -6.5 million internally displaced persons and more than 8.2 million to European countries-, according to the latest data from the UN, which classifies this refugee crisis as the worst in Europe since World War II (1939-1945).
The Russian invasion – justified by Russian President Vladimir Putin as the need to “denazify” and demilitarize Ukraine for Russia’s security – was condemned by the wider international community, which has responded by sending arms to Ukraine and imposing them on Russia in political and economic sanctions.
Source: TSF
