Japan's plan to restart two offline nuclear reactors came under fire Sunday from media and environmental groups amid doubts over the safety of atomic power after the Fukushima accident.

Tokyo Electric Power Co. has released dramatic images taken by an underwater camera showing major damage at a spent fuel storage pool at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant.

Japan on Friday confirmed it was safe to restart two offline nuclear reactors in the wake of last year's earthquake and tsunami disaster as the country faces a summer of power shortages.

Iran "will not retreat an iota" from its nuclear rights, President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said on Thursday, ahead of weekend talks in Istanbul with world powers over Tehran's atomic activities.

The United States has regained the lead in the clean energy race, investing $48 billion last year to surpass China, which held the world's top spending spot since 2009, said a study Wednesday.

Iran on Sunday rejected demands the West is reportedly to submit at talks due to take place in days, saying it will neither close its Fordo nuclear bunker nor give up higher-level uranium enrichment.

Israel on Sunday barred German author Gunter Grass from entering the Jewish state, citing a poem in which he accuses Israel of plotting Iran's annihilation and threatening world peace.

Israeli Defence Minister Ehud Barak on Sunday warned the six-power group negotiating with Iran to set stringent limits on its nuclear enrichment at forthcoming talks.

Iran on Saturday told visiting former Japanese premier Yukio Hatoyama that it will pursue its controversial nuclear programme despite "restrictions," and hopes upcoming talks with world powers will lead "towards trust building," media reported.

The Japanese government approved new safety guidelines for nuclear power plants on Friday in a bid to restart reactors idled after the Fukushima disaster last year.

Radioactive cooling fluid leaked at a French nuclear reactor Thursday following two small fires, but the spillage was safely collected in special tanks, officials said.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Thursday described as "shameful" a poem by German Nobel laureate Gunter Grass, which accused Israel of plotting Iran's annihilation and threatening world peace.

A French nuclear reactor shut down automatically Thursday after two small fires at the installation in the north of the country that firefighters quickly extinguished, officials said.

About 12 tonnes of radioactive water has leaked at Japan's crippled Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant, with the facility's operator saying Thursday that some may have flowed into the Pacific Ocean.

German Nobel literature laureate Gunter Grass touched off a firestorm of protest Wednesday with a poem accusing Israel of plotting Iran's annihilation.

Controversy-courting German Nobel literature laureate Gunter Grass published a poem Wednesday in which he accused Israel of plotting Iran's annihilation and threatening global security.

Controversy-courting German Nobel literature laureate Gunter Grass published a poem Wednesday in which he accused Israel of plotting Iran's annihilation and threatening global security.

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton warned that a nuclear-armed Iran or a conflict over its program would both destabilize the region as she pressed Tehran for clear commitments in upcoming talks.

A 35-metre (115-foot) tsunami could hit the Japanese coast in the wake of a massive earthquake, an expert panel has said after revising its worst case scenario projections following last year's disaster.

Some former residents from the 20-kilometre (12-mile) no-go zone around Japan's crippled Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant will be allowed to visit their homes, according to reports.