Kiev/Moscow, July 17, (dpa/GNA) – Russian authorities, have described an incident on the Kerch bridge to the annexed peninsula of Crimea, as an “act of terrorism,” and blamed Ukraine.
The incident, described earlier by the local administration as an “emergency,” caused traffic to be halted on the heavily-used bridge.
The head of the parliament in Crimea, which was annexed by Russia in 2014, Vladimir Konstantinov, blamed Ukraine for the new attack.
“Tonight Kiev’s terror regime, committed a new crime and attacked the Crimean bridge,” he wrote on his Telegram channel.
The Kerch Bridge running for 19 kilometres over the Kerch Strait, is the only link that does not run through the war zone.
The bridge was attacked by overwater drones early on Monday morning, the Russian authorities said.
There was no official confirmation from Kiev of any involvement in the incident, but the Ukrainian secret service SBU commented on the apparent explosion.
“Once again the bridge has gone ‘to sleep’,” the agency said. The SBU had admitted involvement in a previous attack on the bridge in October, which left a section of it severely damaged.
Belgorod Oblast Governor Vyacheslav Gladkov on Telegram, cited by state news agency TASS, said in a video message that a man and a woman from the Belgorod region in Russia, died in their car in the incident. Their daughter was reportedly injured.
The head of occupied Crimea, Sergei Aksyonov, announced on Telegram early on Monday that traffic was stopped in the area of the bridge’s 145th support pier, because of the incident.
Aksyonov said motorists, should take an alternative land route through the Russian-occupied regions in southern Ukraine.
Russia later resumed rail traffic over the bridge, with a delay of around five hours. Car traffic over the bridge, however, remained suspended.
Kiev has announced its intention to take back Crimea, which Russia annexed in 2014 in violation of international law.
Ukraine has been fighting off Russia’s full-scale invasion of the country since February 2022.
Despite the tense situation and long security controls, Russian holidaymakers have been flocking to Crimea, which can only be reached by train or car.
GNA