Explosion on Crimean bridge

There was talk of one or more detonations on social media. Russia speaks of a Ukrainian act of terrorism.

There has been an incident on an important bridge connecting Russia’s annexed Crimea peninsula to mainland Russia. The Russian-installed Governor of Crimea, Alexey Aksyonov, announced that traffic on the bridge had been stopped because there was an “emergency” in the area of the 145th bridge pillar from the Krasnodar region.

In a video message, the governor of Russia’s Belgorod region, Vyacheslav Gladkov, said two people were killed in the incident. Accordingly, the dead are said to be a married couple, the 14-year-old daughter of the two was injured and taken to a hospital.

Russia blames Ukraine

While there was talk of one or more explosions on the Crimean bridge on social networks, the authorities initially gave no information about what exactly happened there early in the morning. The Russian Ministry of Transport announced that there was damage to the roadway, the bridge construction was intact.

The Telegram channel Basa, which has ties to the Russian security service, published photos and videos showing how a lane on the bridge was destroyed.

Russia blames Ukraine

Later, the Russian anti-terrorist committee spoke of the attack by two Ukrainian surface drones and accused Ukraine of having committed an act of terrorism.

The spokeswoman for the Russian Foreign Ministry, Maria Zakharova, also spoke of suspected British and US aid: “The attack on the Crimean bridge today was carried out by the regime in Kiev. This regime is a terrorist one, and it has all the hallmarks of an internationally organized criminal gang,” said Zakharova. “Decisions are made by Ukrainian politicians and the military, with direct help from American and British intelligence and politicians.”

Kiev security circles also said that Ukrainian forces were behind the attack, as Ukrainian media reported. Accordingly, the secret service SBU and the Navy are said to have been involved.

The Ukrainian secret service initially did not confirm its own involvement, but only said in an initial reaction: “The bridge has ‘gone to sleep’ again. And one … two!” Kiev later claimed responsibility for an attack on the bridge last fall.

Train services resumed

Crimean governor Aksyonov said that the background would be clarified. Rail traffic on the bridge resumed around 8:00 a.m. CEST. The authorities said that a train left the Crimean capital Simferopol in the direction of the southern Russian region of Krasnodar with a delay of around five hours on Monday morning.

The Crimea is in full swing because of the holiday season. Aksyonov called on the residents of the region to remain calm. They should choose an alternative land route through the Russian-occupied regions in southern Ukraine. Despite the tense security situation and long controls, Russian holidaymakers are again being drawn to Crimea in large numbers, according to media reports from Russia, and can only reach them by train or car.

Heavy explosion in October 2022

The incident happened more than nine months after the massive explosion on the bridge. The approximately 19-kilometer-long construction was severely damaged in October 2022, but has since been repaired. At the end of May, the Ukrainian secret service admitted involvement in the explosion for the first time.