Chernobyl Radiation Levels Rise After Russia Takes Nuclear Power Plant

Radiation levels have increased in recent hours in the Kyiv region near to Chernobyl following the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

Ukraine's nuclear agency said it was recording increased radiation levels at the site in Pripyat, around 60 miles from the capital, which was abandoned following the world's worst nuclear disaster in 1986.

However, the agency said the increase was "insignificant" and caused by dust coming from Russia moving in its military artillery.

Russia took the Chernobyl area on Thursday, and there were concerns that gun fire and explosions could lead to more lethal radiation leaking from the plant.

Alyona Shevtsova, an adviser to the commander of Ukraine's ground forces, said in a Facebook post that staff at the nuclear plant had been "taken hostage." The White House condemned reports of workers being held hostage.

Rafael Grossi, the director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency, the UN nuclear watchdog, issued a statement on Thursday saying it was following the situation with "grave concern" and that it was appealing for "maximum restraint" to avoid any action that might put the country's nuclear facilities at risk.

Newsweek has contacted Edwin Lyman, the director of nuclear power safety at the Union of Concerned Scientists, for comments on the developments in Chernobyl.

In the early hours of Thursday, Russian President Vladimir Putin declared war on Ukraine, a move that has drawn scathing criticism from most military powers except for China.

At least 137 Ukrainians have died, including civilians, and hundreds more have been injured as Russia continues its invasion. At least 800 Russian soldiers have also reportedly lost their lives.

Troops have clashed on multiple fronts across Ukraine. Ukraine's interior ministry said that it expected a Russian tank attack on the capital Kyiv later on Friday.

The city is being hit with Russian "cruise or ballistic missiles," a government adviser told reporters via text message on Friday.

Ukrainian and U.S. intelligence indicates that Putin wants to quickly move in on the capital Kyiv. The shortest route for Russian forces to the city is via Chernobyl.

The 1986 Chernobyl nuclear is estimated by the UN to have killed 50 people, but a further 4,0000 might eventually die as a result of radiation exposure. The official death toll of the disaster in Russia stands at just 31, but is thought to be much higher.

The UN refugee agency estimates that since war was declared early on Thursday, 100,000 Ukrainians have fled their homes and that several thousand have crossed into neighboring countries, mainly Moldova and Romania.