Ukraine war: Damage to nuclear plant would be suicide - UN chief
UN Secretary General António Guterres has said he is "gravely concerned" about fighting near the Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant in southern Ukraine, BBC reported.
He made the comments during a summit with Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky and Turkish leader Recep Tayyip Erdogan in Lviv.
"Any potential damage to Zaporizhzhia is suicide," Mr Guterres warned.
The meeting was the first between the UN chief and Mr Zelensky since Russia launched its invasion in February.
Mr Erdogan echoed the UN chief's concerns, telling reporters that he was worried about the danger of "another Chernobyl" disaster erupting at the plant.
In recent weeks the area around the facility, which Russia seized in March, has come under heavy artillery fire, with both Kyiv and Moscow blaming each other for the attacks.
Moscow is accused of turning the facility into an army base, with all three leaders urging the Russians to demilitarise the zone as soon as possible.
Meanwhile, local sources in the Russian occupied Crimean Peninsula reported a number of large explosions near the Belbek military airport.
The appeals come as Ukrainian staff, who are working at the plant under Russian direction, warned of a potential nuclear catastrophe at the facility, saying in the past two weeks it has become "the target of continuous military attacks".
"What is happening is horrific and beyond common sense and morality," staff wrote in a Telegram post (in Ukrainian).
"Ukrainian intelligence officers believe that the Russians are preparing a provocation at the [facility]," Ukraine's Centre for Information security tweeted.
"Following their extensive shelling... [Russian forces] could 'raise the stakes' and stage a real terrorist attack on Europe's largest nuclear facility," it said.
The BBC has been unable to verify the claims.
Shortly before these tweets, Mr Zelensky warned that "the world is on a verge of nuclear disaster" and condemned what he called "Russia's irresponsible actions and nuclear blackmailing".
Despite the concern, the site is said to be far more secure than the Chernobyl plant - the site of the worst nuclear incident in history.
There were reports ahead of the summit that Mr Erdogan would offer to arrange a summit between Mr Zelensky and Russian President Vladimir Putin.
The Turkish leader maintains a close working relationship with Mr Putin, and speaking to reporters after the meeting, Mr Erdogan said he believed the war would "come to the end at the negotiating table".
While Mr Zelensky welcomed the leader's visit and Turkey's "powerful message of support", he flatly rejected suggestions that it could be in a position to broker peace talks, BBC reported.
Mr Zelensky told reporters that he was "very surprised" to hear from Mr Erdogan that Moscow was "ready for some kind of peace".
"There is no trust towards the Russian Federation," Mr Zelensky said, saying that Russia must withdraw its troops, first and foremost.
The leaders were expected to discuss expanding the Turkey-UN sponsored grain deal between Russia and Ukraine - the only diplomatic breakthrough of the conflict so far.
On Thursday, Kyiv said a 25th cargo ship had left Ukraine under the deal which saw Russia agree to end its blockade of Black Sea ports.
Mr Guterres hailed the agreement and urged Russia and Ukraine to adopt the "spirit of compromise" that brought it about.
"From day one, the parties have worked professionally and in good faith to keep the food flowing," Mr Guterres said. "I appeal for this to continue and for them to overcome all obstacles in a spirit of compromise and permanently settle all difficulties."
Elsewhere, in eastern Ukraine Kharkiv Governor Oleh Synehubov said that 17 people had died after Russian shelling hit several residential buildings in the city.
And in Moscow, Russia's foreign ministry said that while a clash with the collective West is possible, a direct nuclear conflict with the US and Nato would not be in Russia's interests.
"Russian military doctrine allows a nuclear response only in response to aggression using weapons of mass destruction, or when the very existence of the state is threatened," Ivan Nechayev said, according to BBC.
House endorses bill to amend Citizenship Act without any changes
The House of Representatives on Thursday endorsed the bill to amend the Citizenship Act, which was sent back to the Parliament by President Bidya Devi Bhandari for reconsideration, without any changes. The bill to amend the Citizenship Act was endorsed by majority votes. Of the total 195 lawmakers present in the Parliament, 135 voted in favor of the bill while 60 voted against it. Speaker Agni Prasad Sapkota called for a vote on the Citizenship Bill after the main opposition party CPN-UML demanded a division of votes. Now, the the Bill will be sent to the National Assembly for endorsement. After it gets endorsed from the National Assembly, the Bill will be sent to the President for certification.
Lawmakers draw government's attention on waste management issue
Lawmakers members have expressed concern over the pressing issue of waste management in the Kathmandu Valley and sought the government's prompt response to address it. Airing their views in the zero hour of today's lower house session, Amrita Thapa Magar said garbage piles in the town have posed a grave threat to public health and made life challenging. Major cities in the country are getting their beauty and essence ruined due to lack of proper waste management, according to the lawmaker. Kalika Khatun insisted on the segregation of wastes. Anjana Bisankhe demanded broader discussions on the Citizenship Bill for necessary amendments to ensure its wider acceptance. Krishna Gopal Shrestha said the Bill was sent back to the House for reconsideration by the President as a severe loophole was assessed in the document. He advised the House to go for serious discussions on the issue. Khem Prasad Lohani said it was the constitutional right of the President to send the Bill back to the House for reconsideration.
Proposal on reconsidering Citizenship Bill approved
A proposal seeking reconsideration of the Nepal Citizenship (First Amendment) Bill, 2079 BS has been approved by the House of Representatives on Thursday. President Bidya Devi Bhandari had returned the bill along with a message to the HoR for reconsideration. The proposal was tabled in the HoR meeting by Home Minister Bal Krishna Khand today. The meeting approved the proposal with a majority. Discussions on the proposal are in the lower house of the Federal Parliament at present. The Bill designed to amend the Nepal Citizenship Act, 2063 BS was sent to the President on August 1 for authentication in accordance with Article 113 (2) of the Constitution of Nepal after it was passed by the HoR and the National Assembly. President Bidya Devi Bhandari on August 14 returned the bill to the House of Representatives, citing that the parliament needed to reconsider it. The parliament has the agenda of passing the Nepal Citizenship (First Amendment) Bill, 2079 BS today itself. Also, Home Minister Khand, on behalf of Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba, presented the 14th annual report of National Women Commission in the meeting.
