Ukraine says it hit Russia's bridge to Crimea with underwater explosives
FILE PHOTO: A view shows the Crimean Bridge, a section of which was damaged by an alleged overnight attack, as seen form the city of Kerch, Crimea, July 17, 2023. REUTERS/Alexey Pavlishak/File Photo
KYIV (Reuters) -Ukraine's SBU security service said on Tuesday that it had hit the road and rail bridge linking Russia and the Crimean peninsula below the water level with explosives.
In a statement, the SBU said it had used 1,100 kilograms (2,420 pounds) of explosives that were detonated early in the morning and damaged underwater pillars of the bridge, a key supply route for Russian forces in Ukraine in the past.
The official Russian outlet which provides regular status updates on the bridge said its operation had been suspended for about three hours between 4 a.m. and 7 a.m. local time.
It gave no reason for the temporary closure, but said the bridge had been reopened and was functioning as normal.
"Previously, we hit the Crimean Bridge twice, in 2022 and 2023. So today we continued this tradition underwater," the SBU said in its statement, adding that the operation had been prepared over several months.
The SBU shared video footage that showed an explosion next to one of the many support pillars of the bridge.
Reuters was able to confirm the location from the structure and bearing elements of the bridge that matched satellite and file imagery of the area. Reuters was not able to independently verify when the video was filmed.
Russian military bloggers said the attack had been unsuccessful and speculated that it had been carried out by a Ukrainian sea drone.
On Sunday, Ukraine launched drones in an operation codenamed "Spider's Web" to attack Russian nuclear-capable long-range bomber planes at distant airfields across Russia.
The 19-km (12-mile) Crimea Bridge over the Kerch Strait is the only direct link between the transport network of Russia and the Crimean peninsula, which Moscow annexed from Ukraine in
2014.
The bridge was a flagship project for Russian President Vladimir Putin. It consists of a separate roadway and railway, both supported by concrete stilts, which give way to a wider span held by steel arches at the point where ships pass between the Black Sea and the smaller Azov Sea.
The bridge was used by Russian forces during their invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, when they crossed it to reach Crimea and from there went on to seize parts of Ukraine's southern Kherson and southeastern Zaporizhzhia regions.
(Reporting by Pavel Polityuk and Olena Harmash in Kyiv; additional reporting by Andrew Osborn; editing by Peter Graff and Mark Heinrich)
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Sun
31 minutes ago
- The Sun
Putin ready to ‘help resolve' Iran nuclear stand-off: Kremlin
MOSCOW: Russian President Vladimir Putin is ready to 'help resolve' the standoff between Iran and the United States over Tehran's nuclear programme, the Kremlin said Thursday. 'We have a close partnership with Tehran. And President Putin said that he was ready to use this partnership to help resolve the Iranian nuclear issue,' Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters. After a call between the leaders on Wednesday, US President Donald Trump said Putin had offered to 'participate' in talks on Tehran's nuclear programme, as Trump accused Iran of 'slow-walking' its response to Washington's offer of a deal. Washington and Tehran have held five rounds of talks since April to thrash out a new accord to replace the nuclear deal that Trump abandoned during his first term in 2018. Trump said Monday that his administration would not allow 'any' enrichment of uranium, despite Tehran's insistence that it has the right under the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said earlier Wednesday that Washington's proposal was against Tehran's national interest. Russia and Iran have deepened their military ties amid Moscow's military offensive on Ukraine. The Kremlin said earlier this week that Tehran had the 'right' to a run a peaceful nuclear energy programme.
The Star
an hour ago
- The Star
Brazen murders threaten Mexico City's image as pocket of safety in violent nation
MEXICO CITY (Reuters) -On a Tuesday morning along a busy Mexico City avenue last month, a secretary to the city's mayor pulled her black Audi SUV up to a metro station to pick up a colleague. Their killer was waiting for them. The assassin shot the political staffers at point-blank range through the windshield, and then through the driver's window, before breaking into a sprint and disappearing into the city's morning bustle, CCTV video of the attack seen by Reuters shows. The murders of Ximena Guzman, a secretary to Mexico City Mayor Clara Brugada, and Jose Munoz, the mayor's adviser, immediately sent shockwaves through Mexico City's political and business elite. Not only was this kind of targeted political violence unusual in Mexico City, many of them believed the murders were a clear message to Brugada from organized crime groups to give them free rein. With around 30,000 homicides a year, Mexico has one of the highest murder rates in the world behind Myanmar, Honduras, and Jamaica according to a 2023 report by the UN. But the violence is almost entirely in areas outside the capital: all but one of the 37 candidates for local and federal office killed in the run-up to national elections last year were outside Mexico City. Experts have pointed to powerful drug cartels as the perpetrators. Reuters spoke to five business people who referred to the murders as shocking and terrifying, but declined to be named for fear of putting themselves at risk. One bank executive said he already uses an armored vehicle and didn't expect to boost security measures further. Not since the dramatic assassination attempt in 2020 of Mexico City police chief Omar Garcia Harfuch -- now Mexico's Security Minister -- has the capital seen what at least two experts said is a blatant effort to intimidate its political leaders. The killings have, at least momentarily, pierced the city's reputation as a safe haven from the country's widespread political violence. There is much at stake for the capital. Mexico City is the country's beating heart: a business, political and tourist hub vital to both the functioning of Latin America's second largest economy and its global image. Any sense the city is no longer safe could deal a devastating blow to its image, especially as Mexico co-hosts the 2026 soccer World Cup alongside Canada and the United States. The Mexico City attorney general's office has not released findings from its ongoing investigation into the crime or identified a suspect. But three security analysts told Reuters the public nature of the attack and its high-profile targets point to the Jalisco New Generation Cartel, one of the most powerful criminal groups in Mexico and labeled by the U.S. as a terrorist organization. The killings showed signs of meticulous preparation, said David Saucedo, a security expert in Mexico City who advises state governments and companies on security issues. He noted they occurred during President Claudia Sheinbaum's morning press conference, where she touted arrests and the confiscation of weapons from criminal groups across several states. "They did it with the objective of dismantling Claudia Sheinbaum's narrative," Saucedo said. "If you want to make a big media splash, you do it in the capital." Mexico City's government and the presidency did not respond to requests for comment. After the killings, Brugada promised the crime would not go unpunished and that her government would continue its fight against violent crime. Mexico City police said the case is being investigated with "the same rigor that every homicide in the city is investigated with." TOURIST HOTSPOT Mexico City in recent years has become a tourist hotspot, with over a million tourists landing at the capital's airport between January and March this year, following only Cancun as the country's airport with the heaviest traffic. Safety has been vital to the city's renaissance as an attractive destination for business and tourism. Between 2019 and 2023, when Sheinbaum was the city's mayor, homicides in the city plummeted by roughly half, according to federal government data - a record she campaigned on in her successful bid the for the presidency. Still, the presence of drug cartels in Mexico City remains beneath the surface. Business owners say it is common for organized crime groups to force nightclubs to allow them to sell drugs in their bathrooms, while some restaurants are told to make extortion payments to operate. Some of the city's wealthier residents have been taking more precautions in recent months, said Fernando Ortega, from Blindaje Diamante, an armored car shop in Mexico City, noting a rise in sales of armored cars this year. "There is a market that might not have the budget for a full armoring, but wants to feel protected," Ortega said. Security analysts say Brugada now faces a dilemma - she cannot let the crime go unpunished but a hardline response risks retaliatory attacks in the city from criminal groups. That mirrors the broader security challenge in the country, especially as U.S. President Donald Trump demands a stronger response to organized crime in Mexico. "Mexico is stuck between a rock and a hard place," said David Shirk, a professor at the University of San Diego, who studies security issues in Mexico. (Reporting by Rafael Escalera Montoto; editing by Emily Green and Deepa Babington)
The Star
an hour ago
- The Star
Analysis-Chile abortion rights bill could shape Boric legacy as Latin American neighbors look on
VALPARAISO, Chile (Reuters) -An effort by Chilean President Gabriel Boric to expand abortion rights in the final months of his administration could finally give him a progressive legacy after three years in office but it is an uphill task that Latin American conservatives are hoping will fail as they seek to reverse gains for the abortion rights movement in the region. Leftist Boric set off a fierce debate in Congress this week with a bill to ease restrictions on abortion. The attempt to fulfill a campaign promise comes at the tail end of an administration that has failed to deliver on progressive proposals such as wideranging tax reforms and a liberal new constitution, which was rejected at a referendum in 2022. Chile's proposed law would decriminalize abortion and allow for the termination of pregnancies up to 14 weeks under any circumstance, putting the country on par with neighboring Argentina. Recent expansions in Colombia and Mexico have cemented even broader abortion rights. But Boric's proposal does not appear to have the support in Congress to pass, potentially making the issue a central part of campaigns ahead of a November vote to replace him as president and elect most of the legislature. Reproductive rights may also face push back in neighboring Argentina where abortion was decriminalized in 2020. Argentine President Javier Milei, an ally of U.S. President Donald Trump, has cut some federal funding for contraceptives and emergency contraception, commonly known as the 'morning after pill.' "Demographic policies should be rethought beyond the atrocity of killing human beings developing in their mother's womb," Milei wrote in a recent op-ed. Milei has focused on taming runaway inflation, but mid-term elections later this year are likely to broaden his support, based on his strength in a recent Buenos Aires vote. That could test his readiness to push through a socially conservative agenda. Constanza Schonhaut, a lawyer and executive director of human rights organization Corporacion Humanas, noted that the abortion debate has increasingly transcended borders as both far right groups and feminist organizations form alliances online. "What happens in Chile can influence other countries and vice versa," Schonhaut said. "In an increasingly connected world, it is not only feminist organizations that are coordinating internationally." When Boric announced the legislation during his last annual address to the nation on Sunday, legislators waving green and purple bandanas that represent abortion rights cheered. "Generations of women have lived and fought for this," Boric said. "Don't deny them at least the democratic debate as citizens capable of deciding for themselves." Members of the conservative bench jeered and shouted, "No abortion!" and several walked out. "Why does (Boric) insist knowing he doesn't have the votes? Why? To insult us," Johannes Kaiser, a far-right firebrand legislator and among the leading presidential contenders, told reporters after leaving the room. A Monday poll showed 25% of voters favor the new proposal while 55% prefer to stick with the current legislation and 19% favor banning abortion. LATIN AMERICA Chile's minister of women and gender, Antonia Orellana, who is overseeing the bill through Congress, acknowledged the proposal faces an uphill battle but said that was also the case with a 2017 law that allowed abortion in limited circumstances, such as rape. "It was work that took a long time and that's what we're aiming for," Orellana said, adding that the goal is to create a "genuine debate." Chile has rejected two attempts to rewrite the constitution, including one supported by Boric that would have expanded rights and a second conservative-led attempt that threatened the limited rights women have to abortion. "Our country gave a very clear sign that it doesn't want to roll back women's rights," Orellana said, noting that abortion rights were not the main reason voters rejected the first proposal, but defending them was a key reason women rejected the second one. The World Health Organization estimates that three of every four abortions in Latin America were unsafe last year. Despite legislation, many abortions take place outside the public healthcare system. The election outlook in Chile is unclear. Polls consistently show the top candidates varying from right to far right. For Congress, a May poll by Centro de Estudios Publicos shows left-wing parties with 17% support, 19% for conservatives and 39% for centrist parties. Politicians like Milei, Trump and Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele, whose country has Latin America's strictest abortion ban, have gained popularity in Chile as crime and immigration have come to top voters' mind. This has propelled candidates like Kaiser, who proposed shutting down the border and deploying the military to fight crime, to the top of polls, alongside fellow ultra-conservative Jose Antonio Kast and current frontrunner, experienced conservative Evelyn Matthei. Elisa Walker, a Chilean lawyer and policy expert based in Washington says the bill will likely depend on the next administration. "This is a bill that is always challenging to discuss. There's no ideal or perfect timing," she said. (Reporting by Alexander Villegas in Valparaiso and Lucinda Elliott in Montevideo; Additional reporting by Lucila Sigal in Buenos Aires and Natalia Siniawski in Mexico City; Editing by Peter Henderson and Alistair Bell)
