IAEA Dismisses Claims of Nuclear Leak in Pakistan’s Kirana Hills
The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has ceremonially refuted rumors on social media of a radiation leak from Pakistan’s Kirana Hills region. On Wednesday, the IAEA said in its statement that there was no evidence of radiation leakage or nuclear accident at Pakistani facilities, despite numerous rumors online.
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According to information at the disposal of the IAEA, “there was no leak or release of any radiation from any nuclear facility in Pakistan,” Andrew Viktorovitch, a spokesman for the IAEA’s press department, reportedly said in response to the queries posed by the media.
Different social media platforms had been awash with unsubstantiated claims that Indian military action could have tampered with the nuclear storage in the area. These rumors received momentum after comments by the Indian Air Marshal AK Bharti at a press conference, which was viewed by some as an announcement of some military involvement in this region.
Added fuel to the speculations were the reports of:
- A US Beechcraft B350 Aerial Measuring Systems aircraft, allegedly seen, in Pakistani airspace.
- US State Department officials are refusing to give comments on whether or not American teams were investigating radiation in the region
- Unverified accounts of special materials for the purpose of radiation control being shipped in Pakistan
IAEA’s Incident and Emergency Centre was created in 2005 and is aimed at facilitating a global response to radiation incidents irrespective of their causes and degrees of magnitude.
