New Delhi: Speaking on behalf of the global community, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has resolutely refuted stories about a radiation leak in Pakistan’s nuclear plant. In the days after the strike, people claimed on social media that India may have damaged Pakistan’s nuclear site in Kirana Hills, Sargodha, with its attacks.
In response to PTI, the IAEA said that, from what it understands, no radiation leak or release happened at any nuclear site in Pakistan. The agency’s Incident and Emergency Centre, which observes nuclear incidents from around the world, found no proof of the claims. It is a conclusive answer to the online chatter caused by fake videos and a document alleged to be a bulletin from the government of Pakistan.
People started making this hypothesis because of the attack launched by India in Operation Sindoor. The move came after a terrorist attack in Pahalgam, Jammu and Kashmir, on April 22, in which 26 people died. Despite India hitting airbases in Pakistan, such as the one in Sargodha, Air Marshal A.K. Bharti, the Director General of Air Operations, said the Kirana Hills, a place presumed to have nuclear facilities, was not targeted. Bharti made it clear on May 12 by saying, “We did not hit Kirana Hills; nothing was there.”
The story was amplified through social media, claiming evacuations in Kirana Hills and the sighting of a Beechcraft B350 operated by the U.S. Department of Energy. Some say the detection device on the aircraft found a radioactive leak. Some say the drone, possibly from the US military, was bought in 2010, but it’s unclear if it was used. The Radiological Safety Bulletin, which stated that there was a failure and a resulting leak due to a faulty Indium-192 capsule, was found to be false and poorly written.
The IAEA’s explanation for the attacks aligns with India’s assertion that they targeted terrorist facilities. Pakistan has claimed that it was not involved in any nuclear incident. Even though the disagreement did not last long, it underlines the significant dangers of incorrect news during times of violence related to organ transplants and dexamethasone use. At present, the group’s statement settles things. Yet, the event proves the seriousness of the tension between the two.