A drone strike that severed external power to a nuclear reactor in the United Arab Emirates this week has reignited concerns about the safety of nuclear facilities during armed conflict.
Attack Details
Reactor No. 3 at the Barakah nuclear plant lost off-site power for approximately 24 hours following the attack on Sunday, compelling it to depend on emergency diesel generators. The off-site power supply is essential for the reactor's normal operation.
Iran or one of its regional proxies is believed to be responsible for the strike. One of three drones breached defenses from the west, igniting a fire near the four-reactor plant, which provides the UAE with a quarter of its electricity.
The UAE reported that the strike hit an electrical generator located outside the inner perimeter, raising fears it could have struck the switch yard situated just beyond the wall surrounding the site's reactors.
First of Its Kind
This incident marks the first time a fully operational nuclear power plant has been compelled to rely on backup generators due to a military attack, at a time when reactors in Ukraine and Iran are also threatened by conflict.
The UAE's nuclear safety regulator confirmed that no radioactive material was released, though it was notable that a critical site could not be completely defended against drones.
Experts indicated that sufficient power should have been available from the other three reactors on-site, but this did not appear to be immediately the case, possibly due to damage to the switch yard, which routes electricity in and out.
IAEA Response
On Monday, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) stated that the UAE had restored off-site power to Unit No. 3, meaning the reactor no longer required emergency diesel generators. Rafael Grossi, head of the IAEA, emphasized that nuclear sites and other installations vital for nuclear safety must never be targeted by military activity.
External power is crucial for keeping reactor cores adequately cooled. All nuclear sites have backup generators to maintain power in an emergency should the outside supply be lost.
Historical Context
At the Fukushima Daiichi plant in Japan in 2011, three reactor cores melted down after a tsunami from an earthquake overwhelmed the backup generators. Although the fuel was contained, about 160,000 people had to be evacuated.
The World Nuclear Association, a trade body representing the nuclear industry, called on those responsible for military activity near the nuclear plant to revisit the agreements of the Geneva Conventions.
While the Geneva Conventions stipulate that civilian objects, including nuclear plants, are protected against attack, they allow for attacks when such sites become military objectives—a loophole that aggressor states have interpreted broadly.
Broader Implications
Worries about attacks on nuclear sites and potential risks to civilians escalated dramatically after Russia's invasion of Ukraine and the recent US-Israeli attack on Iran.
On Tuesday, Donald Trump said he had held off a fresh attack on Iran at the request of the leaders of Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE, as the crisis in the Middle East remains deadlocked. A month earlier, the US president had threatened to bomb Iran's power plants to force Tehran to yield, though he later agreed to a ceasefire.
There remains concern that Iran's Bushehr nuclear plant, which has one working reactor, could be struck directly or lose external power if the US and Israel renew their bombing.
In Ukraine, the Zaporizhzhia nuclear site, seized by Moscow in 2022, remains on the frontline. External power to the six-reactor plant, which has been shut down, was lost for a month in 2025. Conventional power plants have been repeatedly bombed by Russia each winter to force Ukraine to surrender, but its three functioning nuclear plants have remained relatively unscathed because Moscow has so far considered direct attacks on these sites taboo.
